Betrayal is silver, Vengeance is gold
by TTigerz
Summary: Being betrayed is one thing. But being betrayed by your best friends? Unforgivable. Darkness effects the Heart and she will take everyone with her, no matter what. Not sure if T or M.
1. Notes in advance

**Betrayal is silver, vengeance is gold.**

**Author notes in advance.**

Before you start reading I have to tell you that there are some things that are different. The Nerissa season (s2) happened before the Phobos saga. So Will knows about Quintessence and the girls have their secondary powers as well, such as telepathy and telekinesis etc. Though Nerissa used the Heart of Zamballa and the Heart of that stone planet (only shown in V is for Victory) instead of the Heart of Meridian, seeing that no one knew who Elyon really was. The Veil was raised because Phobos started to become a big threat and it's only because of Elyon's powers that there are random portals opening up in the Veil. Elyon can feel when a portal opens. She doesn't know about the Lurdens yet, not having seen them. (forgot in what episode she sees them but I believe it was before the Seal of Phobos so...) Also Elyon knows about the beast forms of both Miranda and Cedric. Will has only seen Miranda's spider form, never hearing her name before and therefore, will not recognize her when Miranda is in human form.

Cedric is more comic based, being a powerful magician instead of the one-trick pony he is in the cartoon. He, just like Miranda, can transform into different animals but he prefers his snake form as battle form, much like Miranda prefers her spider form to battle with.

Miranda can do magic as well and, if trained for a long time, should be capable of getting the same magical power as Cedric. So she can heal as well, and glamour etc.

Will, Cornelia and Elyon are 17. Hay Lin, Irma and Taranee are 16. Caleb is 19, Phobos is 29, Cedric is 27 and Miranda is 18.

The last note is about the Heart of Kandrakar. In this story you can regard the Heart of Kandrakar as two Hearts in power. Water, fire, earth and air make one Heart and Quintessence alone makes another, but because they normally work in harmony they hold combined the power of just one Heart. But if split the bearer of Quintessence can become as strong as the Fire, Water, Earth and Air bearers combined, though only through mental, magical and physical training.

I was inspired by the story "WITCH the dark side of will Vandom" by dark nightmere. Though it still has some grammatical errors and such, it is interesting to read and the idea is interesting as well.

I only disclaim once, so pay attention**.**

_**DISCLAIMER:**__**I **__**DO **__**NOT **__**OWN **__**W.I.T.C.H! **__**IT **__**BELONGS **__**TO **__**DISNEY.**_

This story starts after "the Seal of Phobos" but before "Escape from Cavigor". Have fun reading it and hopefully you'll enjoy it.


	2. Chapter 1 Betrayal

**Chapter 1 Betrayal.**

Another Lurden fell to her lightning. Phobos had ordered an attack on a village of which he believed held rebels. W.I.T.C.H. had laid an ambush to stop the attack and they were holding them off with ease.

Will shot another blast of lightning towards the ground, taking out three Lurdens at once. She looked aside to see how Cornelia opened a crevice, swiping twenty Lurdens at once. Irma shot a jet of water, closely followed by a cooling gale, freezing a big group of Lurdens while Taranee fried a couple more.

"When does Phobos learn that his pets are nothing for us?" Will questioned with a cocky smirk.

The others didn't react like they normally did. No one smirked or laughed. even Irma rolled her eyes.

While Will wondered what was wrong with her friends she didn't notice how a Lurden threw a javelin at her. The javelin struck her wing and Will cried out in pain. She slowly fell to the ground and as she did, she threw a lightning bolt at said Lurden, frying him instantly.

She landed on the ground and prepared to fight ground bound when suddenly the Lurdens started to retreat, She sighed in relief and turned to her friends when she heard something that scared her.

"Stupid creatures. Can't finish their job when their leader is killed."

"Then I guess we'll have to do the dirty work."

With that Will barely managed to dodge a strong water jet. Will looked shocked at her friends. How could they? Were they really planning to kill her? A feeling of fear filled her entire being. Not even Nerissa had scared her like this.

"What are you doing?" Will cried desperately, ignoring the pain in her wing.

She jumped away from another jet of water when a gust of wind blew her against the ground. Thorny vines shot up and grabbed her arms and legs, the thorns piercing deep into her flesh, drawing small drips of blood.

"We're trying to kill you, isn't that obvious?" Irma replied with a sneer while shooting another jet of water, this time hitting her mark.

Will yelled in pain when the water hit her stomach. It was worse than a hit from Cedric's tail and she was sure some ribs cracked and that some of those ribs inflicted internal bleeding.

"We're friends!" She cried before a flamethrower burnt her wings, making her scream in agony.

" 'We're friends!' " Hay Lin mimicked with a high pitched voice.

"Why would we befriend someone who knows nothing about leadership and goes on lucky streaks?" Taranee questioned harshly.

"Someone so pathetically weak?" Irma sneered.

Tears were flowing freely down her Will's face, making the others only taunt her more. Through her tears she noticed how a flowing pink skirt appeared in front of her. Some golden locks fell into view and a voice filled with mirth and evil pleasure whispered to her.

"Don't you get it? They only followed you because I told them to. We only held you close because you were the only one who could bring us to different planets and transform us. But we figured out how to transform on our own and with Blunk and the portals, you've become dispensable." Cornelia whispered with a foul smirk.

Something snapped within Will. Where first was fear, confusion and hurt, was now anger and hate. She had placed her trust in them and they betrayed her trust in them and they betrayed her. They used her like a toy in which they lost interest. But they were wrong. She was a human being. SHE was their leader. And she would show them what happens to betrayers.

She needed to free herself. Despite the fact that the vines held thorns, she pulled her arms and kicked her legs, trying to pull free. Blood started to flow freely down her arms and legs but she ignored the stinging pain, the laughter of her so-called friends ringing in her ears. She felt how the vines started to give in and pulled harder, but before she managed to pill loose, a vine struck her hard in the back and she felt something entering her body. More and more vines whipped her and more poison entered her body. A very thin, sharp vine, full with poisonous thorns, struck her past her stomach, drawing bigger amounts of blood. Will cried her lungs out in pain while she heard Irma snicker.

"Be careful Corny!" Irma joked. "We don't want to end our precious leader's life just yet."

The vines stopped the torturing and retreated back to the earth. Blood spilled on the ground and a small puddle of the red liquid polluted the ground beneath Will. Small drops of blood were still falling past her back, arms, legs, stomach and face. Will herself was still hanging in the thorny vines, her Guardian outfit being thorn and she coughed up some blood.

"Don't worry Will." Taranee said with a smirk. "Cornelia's poison won't kill you It only ensures that your wounds stay open longer than normal."

Will casted her gaze upwards, to the ones she once deemed as her friends. She felt how her hatred was only growing and she wished she was stronger, strong enough to destroy them and wipe their little satisfied smirks of their pretty little faces. I.T.C.H. was flowing in front of her, wearing a smirk of satisfaction and only laughed when they saw her look at them.

"Oh, that's a dark look." Hay Lin commented. "Come on Will! You don't want to enter the afterlife with such an ugly look on your face?"

While the others laughed, Will spat some blood at the ground. She returned her gaze to I.T.C.H. and a smirk of her own formed on her face.

"What's wrong?" She taunted, knowing she would die anyway. "Can't finish what you started?"

At this Cornelia started laughing, a high and posh laugh, as she slowly clapped as if to honor her for her remark.

"I have to admit it. Your courage is admirable." She commented.

"Answer my question, you blonde bimbo." Will demanded, earning a glare and an extra tug on her arms and legs. The thorns pierced her arms so that her muscles started to tense, with no chance to relax them again, weakening Will even more.

"Watch your words." Cornelia growled dangerously, making Will only snicker softly before crying again in pain when another tug was felt.

"Good job Corny! Giving her one last victory." Irma remarked sarcastically, while Taranee and Hay Lin tried to calm down Cornelia.

Irma then turned to Will. Will saw only mirth in her eyes. There was no sign of regret or remorse and it only fuelled her hatred even more. She started to believe that regret and remorse didn't exist. At least, not for her. Her mother had gone off fucking her history teacher, alienating herself from Will, and the woman never seemed to regret it. Her old friends betrayed her and they never showed remorse. And now her latest friends were busy killing her, showing only pleasure in doing so. If she didn't deserve remorse, regret and respect then she would stop showing it as well.

"We've got better things to do than watch you bleed to death." Irma said, snapping Will out of her thoughts.

With that I.T.C.H. took off, sending Will their 'last regards'. Will watched them fly away, but instead of a feeling of complete hopelessness, she felt a hatred like never before. A thirst for vengeance started to burn and she tried with all her might to stay conscious, not trying to give in to the releasing feeling of emptiness. Her final thoughts were with Kandrakar. They could have warned her or stop them, yet they remained silent. Apparently she had outlived her usefulness. They would know how wrong they were. She would get out and she would get her revenge against Kandrakar...And its Guardians. It they wanted a real evil threat, she would show them one.

Slowly she slipped into unconsciousness, the last thing she saw were some shadows of birds, circling above her. She didn't know that the Heart of Kandrakar was glowing or how a shadow fell over her.

**_[A/N] Please note that Will keeps saying that she'll survive and such, but those are just empty thoughts to fuel her anger and to forget that she will die. Also she keeps saying I.T.C.H. till the end. When she says Guardians, she means I.T.C.H. She does no longer count herself as one, seeing that she thinks it is despicable to hold such title while working for those hypocrites._**

**_Don't forget to review!_**


	3. Chapter 2 Memento

**Chapter 2 Memento.**

"Miranda, what are you doing here?"

"Tending to her wounds, what else?"

Will felt terrible. Her muscles were sore and a strange wooziness clouded her mind. She could feel a soft mattress beneath her and a bandage around her stomach. Her back was sore and she felt her wings beneath her back. A tiredness claimed control of her body and the only thing she could was listen to the voices of which one was strangely familiar.

"How is she?" The first female voice said.

"Better. She's healing quicker than expected. The only things that will be a problem are her wings and her stomach. Her wings are too badly damaged and I doubt that even the Heart would heal them and the poison we found in the other cuts on her body seemed to have massed around the wound in her stomach, slowing down the healing process." The other female voice said.

"I see."

A small jab of pain coursed through her when Will tried to move herself a little, making her groan. This also alerted the two women in the room of her consciousness. Will slowly opened her eyes. After that the blurriness disappeared two teenagers came into view. One had short black hair with green eyes and freckles while being dressed in a green and yellow dress while the other one was none other than...

"Elyon?" Will questioned drowsy and confused.

Elyon gave er a wry smile while the other girl shot her an unsure look. Will tried to pull herself up but found that she still couldn't move.

"Hey...Will." Elyon said unsure with an empty smile.

Questions ran through Will's head. Why was Elyon here? Was she captured by Phobos? What she could make out from her limited view of her surroundings, she could see that she was in a castle room. Dark black walls seemed to surround her and to her left was a large window with black curtains through which a sliver of light came through. She was laying in a four poster bed, with wine red curtains. She couldn't understand. If she was caught by Phobos, then why wasn't she in the dungeons, hanging miserably on some chains? Why was she being healed? How did she get hurt anyway?

Every question that her brain formulated lost its way towards her mouth. Instead one single question rolled from her tongue.

"What happened?"

Elyon looked troubled at the other girl and Will started to regret her question. Their look told her that whatever happened wasn't good. Maybe the weird feeling in her chest, which screamed for blood and vengeance, contributed to this foreboding feeling. Her attention turned to Elyon when the latter cleared her throat.

"Well..." She started awkwardly, but was interrupted by another familiar voice.

"That's enough Elyon. You don't want to hurt her more, do you?"

The hissing sound of the voice snapped Will on full alert. There was only one person who had such a silky, hissing voice and it only made her believe that she was caught by Phobos.

In a sudden rush of adrenaline Will shot upwards, surprising both Elyon and the other girl. After just catching a glimpse of Cedric and a vague glimpse of another guy, a pain shot through her from her stomach. She cried in pain and heard yet another familiar voice scream her name in concern. As she fell back in bed she could feel the pain spread throughout her body but she also felt how the haze, which had been clouding her mind, was disappearing. Memories started to flow through her mind and the more she remembered the angrier she became. She finally understood where the feeling of vengeance came from and the more memories returned, the bigger the thirst for vengeance became.

"Will?"

Will turned her head, ignoring the stinging pain that coursed through her and looked at Caleb. She knew that she was glaring coldly but she thought Caleb was exaggerating when she saw him wince back a little.

"What?"

She noted how her voice had grown colder in comparison to when she first woke up. Some sparks were flying around her, indicating the hatred that was now flowing through her veins. Caleb raised an eyebrow in concern.

"Are you...?" He started, but was interrupted when Will remembered again in who's presence they were.

"Why have you sided with Phobos?" She asked, almost demanding.

Caleb's eyes hardened and Will noted how Cedric, Elyon and the still unknown girl stiffened. Apparently the mentioning of a certain dark Prince angered them.

"I do not follow Phobos." Caleb stated harshly.

"And neither do we."

An eyebrow raised and Will looked skeptically at Cedric. He was either lying straightforward and hoping she would be stupid enough to believe him or Phobos had been retarded enough to lose Cedric's and Elyon's loyalty. Cedric didn't seem to be fazed by her skeptical look and only raised an eyebrow of his own as if he wanted to challenge her. Will wasn't really in the mood of childish games so she just took the bait.

"And since when did you stop kissing Phobos's butt?" She asked with a sneer, receiving a glare from Cedric.

Elyon glanced at Cedric. He stopped his glare and turned to her, nodding in answer to her non spoken question. She turned to Will, who was laying bored in bed.

"Well... It all happened three days before we found you."

_Flashback_

Elyon was walking through the castle. Normally she would marvel at the architecture and be amazed that this would become all hers in time, but not today. Last night, during one of her actually forbidden night strolls, she'd seen the most hideous of creatures. Their skin looked like mud with random plucks of hair and scales. They had yellow eyes that seemed to light up in the dark, which lay misplaced in their face and sharp teeth, making her involuntarily think of the orcs from the Lord of the Rings movies (which she had been forced to watch with one of her former crushes Brian). She had seem them work on something in the castle's dungeons but she had been too horrified to actually take a good look on the structure. The only thing that haunted her was the look of those monsters and now she wanted to know what these creatures were and what they were doing in the castle.

She hadn't seen her brother during breakfast and she had decided to pay him a visit in his own room, hoping she would get a clear answer from him.

She entered the front room of her brother's sleeping quarters and walked as softly as she could to the door that would lead to Phobos's bed. Her hand was already on the door knob when she heard noises that made her freeze. It were mostly moaning and groaning sounds with sometimes the words "Yes!" or "Jesus Christ! Yes!" between the moans. The thing that shocked Elyon the most was that the female voice was terribly familiar. She stood frozen in front of the door, not being capable of walking away as she listened to how her brother was making love with her supposed best friend. The sounds ceased not long after and Elyon could not stop a blush from creeping up as she heard her brother's and Cornelia's sighs of happiness. Her imagination was on the verge of going wild when Cornelia's voice, though slightly tired, rang through the bedroom and the doors where Elyon was listening.

"That was brilliant, like always." Cornelia said, making Elyon blush more because it only indicated that she had shared a bed with Phobos more times them once.

"All thanks to your...Contribution." Phobos said.

A silence rang through the room in which Elyon's blush only deepened.

"When do you plan to strike?" Phobos then said.

Elyon's interest peaked and she leaned closer to the door, holding her breath to make sure she wouldn't be heard. She could hear Cornelia sigh.

"Why do you always need to get to the point? Can't you just enjoy the moment?" She replied.

"Gaea."

"I love it when you call me that."

A silence followed in which Elyon imagined Phobos staring down at Cornelia. She could hear Cornelia sigh again.

"Three days. Just order some of your Lurdens to attack a village. We could use the help. And if everything goes according to plan, we'll leave Will dying on my vines and then we only have to wait for Elyon to reach her full powers so you can rightfully reclaim them and kill her so that Metamoor will be ours."

"You forget to mention that after my sister's 'coronation' we'll kill Cedric and Miranda. Those two have done nothing but fail me." Phobos added.

At this Elyon stumbled softly out of the room. She couldn't believe her brother wanted to kill her, but what really hurt her was the fact that Cornelia wanted her death as well. Pain was flowing through her and she could feel how tears were forming. She then remembered what they had said about Will. Will didn't know this. Will had tried to protect her from her brother by not telling her about the Guardians and only now did she see it. She had to find Will before it was too late.

She rounded a corner and saw and angry and surprised Cedric standing next to another door that would lead to Phobos's bedroom.

_End Flashback._

"It wasn't long before we found out that Caleb had heard the conversation as well. Apparently he'd been listening beneath the open window when he tried to sneak into the castle." The newly dubbed Miranda finished with a shrug.

"We found you just in time. An hour later and you'd been dead." Caleb said. "We brought you to this castle. It was once the castle of one of the Earthian knights who accompanied Escanor the Great. Now it's forgotten by most of the inhabitants of the Metaworld."

Will had been motionless throughout the story. The only thing that seemed changed were her eyes, which had become colder.

"I see." She muttered softly.

They hadn't told her why they saved her, but she wasn't stupid. Without her they were not on an even base with the Guardians. Without her it would be one Heart versus two. Advantage? The Guardians.

she turned in her bed, trying not to wince when another jolt of pain came from her stomach.

"Leave me be."

Her voice was cold but she was in no position to express gratitude. If they didn't need her they would have left her to die. Not that she cared. She was alive and could start planning her revenge and if they needed her than they would become useful for her, but now she wanted to be alone. There was no sound of footsteps. They apparently hadn't gotten her order.

"Will...Your stomach wound...I need to heal it." Elyon said carefully. "If not it will take at least four weeks to close and longer to heal completely, plus it will leave a scar..."

"You've done enough." Will interrupted. "Leave."

"But..."

They were obviously slow of mind. She didn't need them now. She forced her magic to crackle around her and she could almost feel someone pull away.

"Let's leave her alone." Cedric said. "If she wishes to be stubborn then so be it."

The sound of hesitant footsteps echoed through her room. The door closed and Will smirked. She would use her second chance to the best of her ability.

Meanwhile outside Will's room were Caleb, Elyon, Miranda and Cedric.

"How long do you think she'll need to heal completely?" Caleb asked.

"Under normal circumstances, I would say five weeks if she denies any help from us." Cedric started. "But since the Heart of Kandrakar merged with her I estimate two weeks at most."

Elyon and Miranda looked in surprise, as if asking how Cedric knew that the Heart had merged with Will, while Caleb let out a sigh of relief. He then walked away, mumbling something about getting some food for Will. Miranda turned to Cedric, concern written on her face.

"Cedric...Have you noticed?" She asked.

Cedric signaled Miranda to stop talking but it was already too late. Elyon turned to him with an inquisitive look.

"Does she mean the little black purple flame that burns on the place where Will's heart is supposed to be?" She asked, concern hidden in her question. "What does it mean Cedric?"

Cedric sighed softly. He could have known that Elyon had seen it. She had bigger magic reserves than Miranda and Miranda had seen it as well. He just silently wondered if the flame would grow or if it would extinguish and if it grew, would it become strong enough to infect them? He looked at the two younger girls, knowing that both were barely tainted with evil. Will was already more tainted by evil than Miranda, though Miranda had grown up in a rather protective environment. He sighed again.

"It means that the little Guardian lost her light."

**_[A/N] End of chapter 2. Some side notes. The title refers to the thought that Will is dead as well as to her regaining her memory. Also note how Will claims the room she lays in after the explanation, already claiming it as her room, her bed etc. The little flame can only be seen by magic users and only if the person with the flame wants them to see it. And seeing that Will doesn't know about the little flame yet it's obvious for Elyon, Cedric and Miranda to see it. And people, if you're going to complain about too much ooc, then you've got the wrong story. This is really meant for people who want to see an evil Will. Also I want to thank NotQuiteNorm for the idea of using the Greek name for Cornelia's element. I personally think it sounds way better._**

**_Don't forget to review!_**


	4. Chapter 3 Intelligence

**Chapter 3 Intelligence.**

The sun shone brightly and Cornelia walked happily through Heatherfield. She'd been skating after a very short funeral. Though the others were against it, they had to make a believable story for Will's disappearance and saying that you've killed her would make your own family hate you. The day that they had told Will died they also told their parents the truth, not to give Will's parents the real reason why their daughter died, but to give themselves a chance to stop lying to their parents. Will's dead contributed to more things than just eliminating a very annoying girl who should have died during their fights with Nerissa. She had been a nuisance, but Cornelia hadn't told Will's parents they killed them. She just blamed it on the Lurdens taking them by surprise and killing her. They had held a closed coffin funeral the day after they told the news, more thanks to Irma who made sure that no one wanted to see the body. She had promised Phobos that Will would rot in the Metaworld. By now she should be some bones and some left over scraps of meat and pieces of clothes.

She started to whistle a happy tune as she walked to the Silver Dragon. There she would get the girls to party in town, to celebrate one of their biggest successes. Right after she rounded the corner to the Silver Dragon she noticed the others standing outside the basement door and in front of the garbage pile next to the restaurant. That could only mean one thing.

She was quickly answered when Hay Lin turned around, grim features clouding her normally bright face. She didn't even look like that when Cornelia had told them to kill Will.

"Cornelia. We've got news from Meridian and you won't like it." She said darkly.

Cornelia raised an eyebrow and walked forward, seeing Blunk standing in front of her girls. When the ugly passling noticed her he waved with his hands.

"Princess gone!" He said shocked. "Caleb asks for Guardians!"

Cornelia's heart stopped then. Where did Elyon go? Without Elyon they couldn't take over the Metaworld, cause as long as she lived, Cornelia couldn't be crowned as Queen. She nodded at the girls, their party had to wait. She turned to Blunk who was looking around her, probably looking for Will.

"Blunk, bring us to a portal." She demanded, making Blunk look in confusion at her.

"Where Will?" He asked first.

Cornelia growled softly. The little troll could remember Will's name but he never seemed to try and remember one of their names. Will and him always seemed to like each other, perhaps because the troll resembled a toad as well. Was she about to hurt him and she would like it as well.

She faked a hurt look, having trained for years, and looked sadly at Blunk.

"Sorry Blunk...Will is dead." She said with a hurt voice.

She was applauding herself. She could be really convincing if she had to and the toad was falling for it, hook, line and sinker.

Blunk started to cry loudly and Hay Lin made sure no one would hear his cries. The other Guardians caught her look and smirked at her before all faking a sad face again. Blunk kept crying and crying, sobbing about poor little Will. It was that they needed him for the free portals or Blunk would have died right next to Will. He started to wipe his nose on Cornelia's skirt and Cornelia was literally controlling herself to not kill the ugly troll. She cleared her throat and continued in the same sad voice, though trying to sound a bit righteous.

"But you have to show us the portal. Will would have wanted for us to rid Meridian of its injustice." She said convincing, making the little toad nod his head in sadness and started to walk away.

Cornelia grinned at the other Guardians before following Blunk. The new portal seemed to be behind Elyon's old house and was easy to reach. They transformed themselves and stepped through the portal. They would close it when they returned, another thing they figured out by themselves. As long as they concentrated their powers at the middle of the portal, they could close the thing. Another sign that Will was unnecessary.

Within no time they arrived at the rebel base. The only reason why Cornelia hadn't told Phobos where the base was, was because the rebels were still useful. And now they would proof it. They entered the Infinite City to find a mess. People were yelling through each other while Aldarn tried to calm the rebels down, but to no avail. Cornelia noticed Caleb standing against one of the big pillars in the Infinite City, having his arms crossed and looking at the rebels, though his eyes betrayed that he was deep in thoughts. Cornelia smiled as she walked towards him. Though she preferred Phobos, Caleb was no bad kisser himself and what Phobos didn't know, would not hurt. She hang her arms around his shoulders and wanted to kiss him out of his thoughts when Caleb's eyes suddenly rested on her. He seemed colder than first but she shrugged that thought off when he smiled at her, grabbing her close and pushing her gently against his body. Why would she think something was wrong? He was probably just worried.

"Where is Will?"

Why was everyone so concerned about Will? She was the weakest link of all of them, she couldn't even control her powers properly...Well not that she needed them now anyway. Again the face of played hurt and she whispered to Caleb.

"She died in a car accident. We buried her today." She told him, knowing that this reason would not rile the rebels against Phobos.

Caleb raised an eyebrow, as if he wasn't believing her. He then nodded. He knew how dangerous cars were since the moment he had stepped into a cab with Blunk so he knew how dangerous those things were. His face didn't show grief but Cornelia thought he would grief later, for now the fate of his precious Metaworld was at stake. She could not wait to see him work as a slave again. That naked upper body was arousing enough.

She was startled out of her thoughts when Caleb let go of her. She slightly pouted because he had not given her a kiss but she quickly dismissed it as concern for the rebellion. Caleb climbed to a higher stage and easily managed to silence the rebels, Aldarn shooting him a look of gratefulness.

"Friends. I have grave news. The Keeper of the Heart has died. She was killed by an accident with a dangerous vehicle on Earth." He spoke.

Rebels all over started to whisper. Cornelia heard voicing of concern and fear and she had to repress the urge to roll her eyes. These people were too easy. She shot a look at her girls, who only looked back with a small smirk. They flew up and landed next to Caleb, who once again called for silence.

"It is a great loss, but we can only wish that the remaining Guardians are still willing to help us." He said, while looking expectantly at Cornelia.

Cornelia knew he was expecting her to say some soothing words and she cleared her throat. She made sure her look was sad and she could see the rebels falling for it.

"Yes, we truly miss our leader. Today was her funeral, but that can't get us down. It only strengthened our resolve. We only want to fulfill her last wishes, getting rid of the injustice in Metamoor." She said, making some rebels cheer for her.

"And what about the princess?" One questioned. "She's gone missing!"

Cornelia's face hardened a bit. It had been a pain to find her and now she was lost again. The stone of Threbe had been destroyed after Elyon returned to the palace and now they had to find her the old fashioned way. She would make sure that her 'best friend' would suffer long enough before Phobos could kill her, just for all the things she made Cornelia go through.

"We'll search for her and I hope you will do the same. It's crucial we find her. Without her, we cannot straighten out the injustice done to the people of this world."

More cheering and Cornelia smiled. She had always been good with words and now, she would not even break her promise. Though she would fulfill it in a way the rebels would never think off.

The rebels scattered and Cornelia turned to Caleb, making sure he would not follow her.

"Caleb, we'll search through the air. Can you go and..."

Caleb took her hands and looked her in the eyes. There was still something in his eyes that made her feel strange, as if he was trying to repress a certain feeling.

"Cornelia, I'll be going undercover for some time. I don't know for how long and I won't come back too often. Maybe once a month. Please, don't go looking for me and keep looking for the Princess. We need her." He said to her in a way that would make many women swoon.

Cornelia just nodded, knowing that going to Phobos would be safer with Caleb undercover. She could ask him where he would go, but she found herself not interested. Caleb gave her a quick kiss on her lips, too quick for her taste, and went away. Cornelia stared at him when Irma pulled her out of her thoughts.

"So...Where is he off to?"

Cornelia shrugged.

"He said he would go undercover. Only better, that way he won't be a problem." She said bored.

"So...We'll fly around while you go inquiring with our Prince?" Taranee asked as she adjusted her glasses.

Cornelia nodded and the four of them flew out of the base. Irma went east, Hay Lin went north and Taranee went south while Cornelia flew, unnoticed, to Phobos's castle. At first Taranee would have gone west but they knew there were just a few villages in the heavily forested area and it would be unlikely for Elyon to go there.

As Cornelia flew towards Phobos's castle she could see that something was different. The guards were slacking off more than usual and some were not even on their posts. She landed near the castle and transformed back. She called a cloak with her magic and whistled sharply. Within seconds a beautiful brown horse came galloping towards her. It was a gift of Phobos so she could not only travel in style but also could enter the castle without being attacked. The guards would recognize the horse and would let her go past.

She mounted her horse and slowly rode towards the drawbridge. The guard who was supposed to stand on guard was sleeping when he woke up from the sound of horse hooves on the wooden bridge. He had opened his eyes lazily but when he recognized the horse, his back straightened. He knew that this was the special guest of Prince Phobos and he knew that she could tell the Prince about his incompetence. He saluted for her but all he heard was an annoyed sigh. This either meant he was safe or that he would hear from his mistake later on. He sincerely hoped it was the first option.

Cornelia rolled her eyes as she rode past the guard. Cedric was slacking off big time if his guards were this lazy. Some of the people who worked at the stables hurried towards her. She descended and handed them the reigns, already busy with walking towards the entrance. Phobos should better have an explanation ready, because the things she was seeing were worrying.

Phobos sat in his throne. Not only his sister had disappeared, but also his first man and Miranda. They all left without a warning yesterday. Now his castle was a mess. He had to find a new general and was silently regretting throwing Raythor in the Abyss of Shadows. He could have used the man right now. He was silently pondering who he could elevate to the position of general. It had to be a terrifying man, or at least someone who would demand respect and till now, he hadn't found someone who could fit the bill. Maybe the captain of the guards. He had the respect of the guards, and making him general would force the guards to go back to full alert. And maybe entering a new law, that whoever is found sleeping on the job will be killed.

He nodded to no one in particular, knowing that this was the best option when he noticed that his door opened. An annoyance crept through him. He had said that no one was to disturb him, yet some fool thinks he can.

"Go away. I have ordered that no one is allowed to enter this room till further notice." He ordered sharply.

A girlish giggle came from the door opening and Phobos raised an eyebrow. There was only one with such laugh, but he could not think of a reason why she would come to him now. Surely she should know about the problem that he was facing, so why would she disturb him.

"Do you usually greet your lover like this or are you just stressed?"

The door opened and his eyes fell upon the blonde Goddess that one day, accidentally entered his garden. She had been so cold back then and that only intrigued him. The girl would always have a wall around her but he saw it as his mission to break that wall down and he would find a way. She was a gift of the Gods, a spy in the Guardian group and their true leader and now, if his calculation was correct, she was the only leader of the Guardians now that that red haired pest was dead.

"Gaea." He said and he couldn't stop a small smile from gracing his already handsome face. "What brings you here at this time? Surely you should be celebrating your victory over a certain redhead?"

Her eyes hardened a bit and he guessed he had hit a cord. His guess should have been correct as she sighed slowly and walked forward, towards him, shrugging her shoulders in a nonchalant matter while her golden hair swept behind her. He always admired her Guardian form but her real, human form was, if possible, even more impressive.

"We were actually planning on doing so. We held her fake funeral this morning and we were ready to go until a certain toad told us that your sister disappeared." She said, a slight accusation in her voice.

As if he was the blame his sister ran away. He was her estranged brother and not her babysitter. Though he had to admit that she could have been scared of the fact that she would be Queen in a couple of months and that that might have scared her enough to run away. The only thing that made things more complicated was that she could have gone back to Earth as well, with her powers to create portals. Though he wondered if she would return to that school and to Cornelia. His sister always seemed to miss the Earth Guardian so perhaps he shouldn't be too worried.

"Please, I already have troubles enough without any extra accusations." He said gently, though sighing a bit. "Cedric and Miranda have disappeared as well, without a trace."

He saw how her eyebrow raised, giving her a look that was cute yet somewhere a bit terrifying. It was too bad that she had to give the impression that she joined the rebellion cause else she would make a perfect general and of course, a perfect Queen.

"They disappeared as well?" She asked surprised. "Did any of the three say something to you?"

Phobos shook his head with a sigh.

"I'm afraid not." He said. "Elyon had breakfast with me and during that she asked me what I would do that day. I told her that I would sent a small group of guards to 'help' a village that was attacked by monsters and she seemed to believe me. After that she went to the gardens and that was the last thing I've seen from her. Cedric nor Miranda showed up that day."

"And your viewing sands? Can't they get a hold of Elyon's, Cedric's or Miranda's location?" She asked him.

He knew she would ask that. She never let something pass by without checking every possible detail. He shook his head once more while he reached for the pot next to his throne. With a swift movement he grabbed some of the sands and threw them in front of her. The sands started to swirl and he cleared his throat.

"Show me Elyon."

The sands remained blank, not that he was surprised. He saw the concerned look on Cornelia's face and with another swift movement, he made the sands disappear.

"And that happens as well if you ask for Cedric or Miranda?" She asked concerned.

He nodded and he heard her sigh in frustration. She was the one who helped the most with his plans and it was only natural that she would feel as frustrated as him. He had been close to completely controlling his sister and right before he could manage, she had to disappear.

"I swear that if I'll find her I will torture her before you can drain her." He heard Cornelia mutter in spite and he chuckled lightly.

He had been surprised by her and her sometimes rather sardonic and evil ways but he did love it. If he lacked somewhere she would help him. He stepped down from his throne and walked towards her, cupping her chin in his hands and looking down at her. Though she was many years younger than him, she seemed to hold a beauty equal to Goddesses and her anger seemed to enhance it. In fact, all of her emotions seemed to enhance her beauty.

"Dear Gaea, don't worry." He whispered to her. "We'll find her and then you will have your time with her."

She smiled at him and he took her lips on his. His lips hungered for the touch of hers and for a moment he forgot his worries. With Cornelia at his side, no one would stop him.

Days went by and the Guardians, the rebels and Phobos searched for Elyon. They were all monitored by the people of a giant fortress. A fortress in the middle of Infinity. Inside the fortress were people who watched over the balance and all were starting to worry. Not only did their Guardians side with the threat that they were meant to stop, they also tried to kill their leader, who was now falling into darkness.

Inside the Congregation Room were just a few people. A young, bald man, who floated above a pool in which images went by, an old man with a long white beard and an older woman with white vague blonde hair. All looked concerned at the Viewing pool under need the young man and the young man could sense their concern. He too was concerned about what was transpiring on Metamoor.

"Oracle, shouldn't we warn the Guardians?" The woman asked. "They must stop this at once."

"Not to mention warn them of their ex Leader, who is calling for their blood." The man with the long beard added.

The young man, who the woman addressed as Oracle, opened his eyes. Though his whole composure beamed tranquility, his eyes shone with concern and regret. He should have stopped the Earth Guardian from venturing into Phobos's garden, but now he could only watch and see how the Guardian of Quintessence would destroy not only the remaining Guardians, but the balance of the worlds as well.

"Warning the Guardians would be a good idea. After they handled with their leader they will be brought here for a trial. Guardians are meant for peace and not world domination." The Oracle stated solemnly.

The remaining present nodded and the Oracle prepared himself to contact the remaining four Guardians when a noise caught his attention. He, as well as Tibor, his advisor, and Halinor, the former Guardian of Fire, turned to the source of the noise and found Luba, the Keeper of the Aurameres walking into the Congregation room. Her face had some marks of ash, her clothes were ripped and blood flowed gently from her arms.

"Oracle..." She said with difficulty before crashing to the ground, apparently too damaged to continue.

Tibor and Halinor looked concerned at each other while the Oracle walked to Luba to heal her. How could Luba be this wounded? Who would attack the Fortress of Infinity? And how was it possible that none of them, even the Oracle, hadn't noticed a thing?

Luba slowly awoke and her eyes were wide in fear. She looked up at the Oracle and grabbed at him, trying to find something to calm her down. The Oracle placed his hand on her head and slowly but surely, Luba calmed down.

"Luba my friend. What happened to you?" The Oracle asked calmly, though Luba could clearly see the concern in his eyes.

Luba swallowed some bile as she thought back at what happened to her just minutes ago. She was guarding the Aurameres and was worrying about the darkened colors of all of them when suddenly the Auramere of Quintessence broke free from the circle, four days after the supposed 'death' of the Guardian of Quintessence. The Auramere's color darkened even more than the others and without a warning it started to shoot lightning bolts at Luba. The other Aurameres quickly joined in and Luba barely managed to flee the Chamber of the Aurameres.

"The Aurameres. They are no longer following the will of Kandrakar." She said, fear still laced in her voice.

The Oracle looked with great concern at her, his facial features no longer holding any tranquility. He helped her sit up and she quickly got up. The Oracle was already walking towards the Chamber of the Aurameres and she quickly followed with Halinor and Tibor in tow.

They arrived at the same scene Luba had fled. The four elemental Aurameres still circling each other while the Auramere of Quintessence circled above them, shooting minor bolts of lightning through the room.

The Oracle took a step towards the Aurameres when suddenly all movement stopped. The Auramere of Quintessence stopped the movement of the other orbs and it slowly started to bubble. Slowly but surely a figure started to form from the Auramere and Luba felt how her breath stopped in her lungs. She heard Halinor gasp in shock while Tibor seemed to be able to faint any second now. The Oracle remained his composure as the Auramere of Quintessence was taking the form of the Guardian itself. Though the body was completely dark pink, the hair was still blood red and the eyes were of the darkest brown Luba had ever seen. She also noticed a bandage around the girl's stomach, but her attention was quickly drawn back to her face, when the girl smiled at them.

"Good morning." The Guardian greeted, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I hope you've enjoyed the show on Metamoor."

"Will. Vengeance is not the way." The Oracle said calmly, trying to reason with the girl.

The girl just laughed, a laugh that was cold and which was missing any pleasure. She looked skeptically at the Oracle, her grin settling something of fear inside Luba.

"It may not be the way, Oracle." She said, her voice holding a laugh. "But it sure as hell will make me feel better."

"What will you do if you've finished your revenge?" Tibor asked.

The girl glared at him, pure hatred blazing in her eyes. Luba wondered how this girl, who was first almost a poster girl for all that was good, could turn so quickly into such a dark creature. Perhaps this was a human flaw or perhaps it was something every Keeper had to endure. She wondered how it was possible that this girl was only in her first stage of evil, if she was already this cold and distant.

"Then Kandrakar will fall. And after that, who knows. Perhaps I'll conquer some worlds or just destroy them. I don't really care." She said with a shrug after her glare had diminished.

"Is this what has become of you? A shell which only holds anger and hate?" The Oracle asked.

The girl laughed again and Luba was sure that if the girl would train her magic more, she would be able to freeze the water of the Aurameres with just her laugh.

"No Oracle." She said. "Not of anger and hate, but of evil. I shall find a way to get rid of the more goody emotions. I will no longer hold compassion by the time I'm done, nor love or any of those feelings."

"We will stop you." Luba snarled, looking braver than she actually felt.

She couldn't understand how this girl could scare her so much, while she'd seen more terrifying things in her life than just a rampaging Guardian. But this one. This one seemed so different from all the threats before.

The girl laughed once more while casting a final look at the her before turning to the Oracle.

"I would like to see you try it." She said. "For, as you probably already know, I have become the Heart of Kandrakar, seeing how the crystal merged with me."

Luba felt her heart stop and from the corner of her eye she saw Halinor faint. How was it possible that the Heart merged with this girl? How could the Heart accept this girl's ideals? How could the Heart recognize this girl as its true rightful owner? Luba saw that even the Oracle's face had lost its composure for a moment and the girl laughed again.

"Oh? Is this such a surprise?" She asked rhetorically.

"What did you do to make it merge with you, you witch?" Tibor spat at her, making the girl only raise her eyebrow.

"Please. I was dying." She said nonchalantly. "I was dying while thinking of a way to get my revenge. Initially I wanted to haunt you guys for eternity like a ghost, but this second chance is way better."

The smile on her face was scarier than the glare she had leveled at Tibor.

"I guess that the Heart no longer wanted to work for you. That it finally saw the hypocrisy you people maintain. And it wanted to safe me. To give me another chance. A chance for revenge." She said with a shrug and an evil smirk.

"The other Guardians will stop you." Tibor growled angered.

The girl only raised her eyebrow.

"And how will they do that? They think I'm dead and they are desperately searching for Elyon. I don't think I have to be worried."

"We'll inform them of your presence." The Oracle replied calmly.

Luba grinned. There was no way that the girl could have foreseen that. She could not stop the Oracle. Or at least, that was what she thought. The girl just snickered.

"You will do no such thing." She simply said. "For I control this place. You can no longer touch the Aurameres nor get into contact with the Guardians, their allies or potential allies. Being the Heart of a world has its perks, doesn't it?"

Luba felt her knees tremble. How was it possible that this girl knew so much of the Heart? Was it helping her? Were they really meant to die because of one of their own?

The girl made a mock bow before waving to the Oracle.

"See ya soon, Oracle." She said with a sneer before the Auramere started bubbling again and her image disappeared.

The Auramere of Quintessence had returned to its normal state and the Aurameres started to circle again. Luba looked at the Oracle, hoping to find some guidance, that somewhere the girl had been lying. That there was still a way to save the universe.

"Is it true what the Guardian told us, Oracle?" Tibor asked, while he was busy reviving Halinor.

The Oracle closed his eyes and Luba guessed that he was trying to contact one of the Guardians. His eyes snapped back open and Luba could see the concern. The Oracle took a step towards the Aurameres, trying to stop the flow of the Auramere of Quintessence when a powerful blast pushed him away. Luba hurried to the Oracle, to find him a little dazed. He got up and turned to them.

"I'm afraid so, Tibor." He said with a grave voice. "Will has shot us off from the other worlds."

Halinor, who had just regained consciousness, gasped in shock and Luba almost thought that she would faint again, but Halinor steadied herself and looked in fear at the Oracle.

"But Oracle, we can't stay here and wait like sitting ducks." She said concerned.

Luba agreed with that, though perhaps it could have been voiced in a different way. The Oracle nodded solemnly and turned around, walking to the deeper parts of the fortress.

"We shall use the oldest spell of Kandrakar. Hopefully we'll make it in time." He said before disappearing completely from Luba's eyesight.

While Tibor and Halinor looked concerned at each other, Luba casted another glance on the Aurameres. The Auramere of Quintessence was still shooting small bolts of lightning and Luba could feel how a dark presence started to settle in the Auramere. She prayed with all her might that the spell would be prepared in time or else the whole universe would be destroyed by just one mistake of Kandrakar.

_**[A/N] My, my. What kind of spell will the Oracle use? Will it be prepared in time? Being the Heart of the control system in the universe makes you rather powerful, doesn't it? That's what you get for not warning the Keeper of a complot against her. Corny and Phobos seem to have it cozy... You people have no idea how weird it is to write such a things... **_

_**Please review**_


	5. Chapter 4 Vows

**Chapter 4 Vows.**

Two weeks had passed. Two weeks since she woke up in a bed while being cared for by Miranda and Elyon. And ten days after she'd 'visited' Kandrakar. Over the days Caleb, Miranda and Elyon had visited her, mostly with food and water. Elyon and Miranda tried to heal her stomach but she refused. This would remind her of why she wanted her revenge. The pain would be instilled in her bones and she would not only become stronger, but she would also know what pain to inflict to the Guardians. So Elyon and Miranda only changed her bandages. In her time laying in her bed she found out that this Miranda was the same as the monstrous spider that had been fighting her for a long time. Only Cedric hadn't showed his ugly face, but she guessed he was playing it safe.

Over the days Will noticed that her Guardian outfit was repairing itself. She hadn't bothered to change back. Not because she knew that her pain would just increase, but because she wanted to get rid of her wings. They were useless now anyway and would only mark her as a slave of Kandrakar. She would change her outfit over time but now she wanted to get rid of the wings, but she had to wait to heal just a bit more, so that she wouldn't faint on the spot.

Her stomach rumbled and Will carefully placed her hand on top of it. The wound was almost fully closed, though Will knew that movements would open it again. She sighed. She was hungry and was done laying in bed, staying inactive. Her revenge was planned and she rested enough. She balled her fists and grabbed the linen. Slowly she pushed herself upwards, swallowing the pain that came from her stomach. The jolts were hurting her and she felt her arms tremble under the strain but she managed to push herself up, sitting on the rim of her bed. She let her gaze go through her room while breathing slowly, trying to retrieve some of the energy that she just used.

Her room was simple with a wardrobe in the corner, a table and a chair, her bed with next to it a nightstand, a fireplace and a big window that gave her a good view on the forests around the castle, a soft light shining inside her room from the full moon that hang above the trees. Some paper, ink and a pen were left on the table, if she ever felt the need to write something, but they were laying untouched. Her boots stood next to a bowl which were next to her bed, seeing that none of the others had come to bring her some new food. Right next to the bowl was a small pile of books. They were all about magic and it was thanks to those books that she figured out how to stop Kandrakar from interfering. She also found some other handy things but she had decided to wait until she was completely healed. No need to strain yourself if it wouldn't work and maybe even kill you.

Her energy slowly returned and Will inhaled deeply before pushing herself of the bed. She managed to stand up, though a new jab of pain ran through her. She placed her hand on her stomach and felt how the bandages started to wet. The wound had opened itself once more. She sighed in frustration and waited until her vision stopped blurring and her legs stopped swaying. Once she had a proper footing she started to walk towards the door. Every step shot a small jab of pain through her body but Will bit her teeth. She had had worse and she would not bow for this wound, especially not if she remembered who had inflicted said wound. She opened the door and took her first steps outside of her room. She didn't know where the kitchens were but luckily for her, she didn't have to. A smell of food was floating through the air and all Will needed to do was follow it.

She slowly walked though the numerous hallways of the castle, not seeing a living soul. Will wondered if Cedric had kidnapped several people to make the food or if someone of them was preparing the food. She slowly descended a stairs, looking at the old carpets that were covering the wall. They were telling of a war, but Will found herself not interested. The only things that interested her were her vengeance and the fact if she could find something to eat. She rounded yet another corner when voices echoed through the hallway. She slowly made her way to a door through which light was shining. She stopped in the shadow of the door and casted her gaze upon what looked like a dining room. A long table was being made by women Will didn't know, thus confirming her theory about the kidnapping as one of the women casted a terrified look at Cedric, while Miranda, Cedric, Elyon and Caleb were standing nearby the fireplace. Cedric was smirking while Caleb was glaring. Elyon only looked interested while Miranda was staring into the fire.

"I'm glad you're back." Elyon said with a genuine smile.

Caleb nodded briskly as he let his gaze wander through the room. He thought he saw some movement at the door but he shook that thought off. he was going insane if he kept thinking those things.

"Took you long enough. Two weeks, if my calculation is correct." Cedric sneered softly.

Caleb glared at him. If it wasn't because Will was here, he would have killed the bastard by now, but Caleb knew that it was better to have him as an ally instead of an enemy, or a dead person. He just wished the snake would stop taunting him. They were on the same team after all, even though he hated the thought. He had never thought that he would ally himself with Cedric and Miranda, but then again. He'd never thought that the Guardians would betray Will.

"If you had waited for me than I wouldn't have to travel for two full weeks to get here!" Caleb hissed angered, making Cedric only laugh. "Next time I'm searching for a Saberwolf and bond with it. Those are at least reliable."

"Tsss, boy. Can't you take a small joke?" Cedric teased. "Besides, the risk that I would have been seen was too big, you know that."

Caleb just scowled and looked away, into the fire. He knew the snake was right, but there was no way in heaven or hell that he would admit that. He stared into the fire and wondered how Will was doing when he felt someone pulling his sleeve. He turned to look at Elyon, who had an inquisitive look on her face.

"So? "What did you hear?" She asked him.

Caleb just raised an eyebrow but then noticed how both Cedric as Miranda looked at him, both wanting to get the information from the rebellion. He sighed as he ran his hand through his shaggy hair.

"Nothing much. The news that you went missing made a big impact. In the castle as well as in the rebellion. There is now an all out search for you, the Guardians, the rebellion and Phobos's army are all searching for you." Caleb said with a shrug while looking at Elyon.

Elyon giggled slightly, imagining big search parties for her while they would never find her. Cedric had taught her how to evade Phobos's Viewing sands so she wasn't that concerned. Caleb grinned as well and she wondered if the same thing came up in him.

"And they told about Will's death." He said. "They told me she died in a car crash. Her funeral was twelve days ago."

Before anyone could react to that news a cold laugh came from the door opening. Caleb noticed how several women, who had been kidnapped by Cedric to do their bidding, much to Caleb's disgust, shuddered as they all turned to the door opening. Will slowly walked into the room, her Guardian outfit completely restored though the bandage around her stomach was stained with red, meaning that the wound was still open. Will had a dark smirk on her face as her laugh diminished to a chuckle.

"I'm even late for my own funeral." She said with a hint of a laughter.

"Will?" Caleb asked surprised.

He hadn't expected her to be out of bed, let alone be so cool about the news he just told. Will looked through the room and easily dismissed the women who bowed for her, probably recognizing her Guardian outfit. Her gaze fell on the small group near the fireplace and grinned. She could understand why they wouldn't smile. They didn't think it was funny, yet she could see the humor in it.

"I see that we're all gathered here." She said nonchalantly as she took several steps forward, refusing to bow to the pain she felt. "Talking Purse, Wannabe Queen, Diaper rash Rebel and the female Spiderman. I'm honored."

Everyone of them glared at her at the sound of the new nicknames though Elyon snickered at Miranda's seeing that she was the only one who got the subtle insult. Will rolled her eyes as she ignored the glares. She was not in the mood to be 'nice' to them and she didn't see a reason why.

"I see that you're out of bed." Cedric commented dryly, as if he was having regrets of saving her.

Will slowly clapped for him, her grin not falling.

"My, you should get an award." She said calmly.

Cedric didn't react to the remark, though he sent Caleb a glare when he snickered. Will let her gaze wander through the room and noticed how the women were now placing an extra plate on the table. She was apparently in time for dinner.

"You're still bleeding." Miranda remarked, pointing at her stomach.

Will waved it away. Two more days and it should be healed anyway.

"Only because I walked. It should stop soon enough." She said airily.

Cedric looked with interest at the Guardian leader. In two weeks time she darkened considerably. The flame had grown bigger and was almost the size of his human hand. Next to the fact that she was waving the pain away as if it was nothing, yet by the way her muscles tensed he could see it was still hurting her. But she was right, within a couple of days she should be completely healed. That was good, that way he could start the training. He, together with Elyon, Miranda and, to his regret, Caleb had decided to not only train Will, but Elyon as well. Miranda would accompany Elyon in the magic lessons. They knew that, even though they had two Hearts, they could not win of the Guardians. The Guardians had more allies and could even call on the complete army of Phobos or the complete rebellion and he wasn't even talking about the wretched Regents of Earth. They had to increase their mystical might as well as their physical. But their prized possession, Will, would need private training. Not because she was all that special, but because they weren't sure as to how she would change. They were afraid that she would use Elyon or Miranda as a practice target and seeing how Will had a little more experience in magic than Elyon, she would be capable of killing her. Cedric cleared his throat, getting the indifferent attention of the redhead.

"We have discussed about a lot of things during your period in bed and we came with the idea of training." He said calmly, watching every movement of the redhead with care.

Will only raised an eyebrow but did not say a thing. Perhaps she was truly interested or maybe she was waiting for a better moment to sneer. He didn't wait for that to happen and continued calmly.

"Even though we're matched when it comes to Hearts, the Guardians are still in bigger numbers and can call upon Phobos's armies. That's why we thought it would be better if we trained before going into a confrontation with them. You will train every morning with Caleb on physical aspects like stamina, sword fighting etcetera while after the lunch I shall teach you the finer points to magic, like shape shifting and more things about your element." Cedric said. "Miranda and Elyon will train apart from you and only in the magic department."

Will couldn't believe her ears. Were they actually purposing her to train her? She laughed inwardly. Things were going better than she had expected. She'd thought she had to force them to train her. She was already planning on becoming stronger. She wanted to reach her Guardian level in power in her human form, knowing that her Guardian powers would only double. That, with the other thing she planned should make her strong enough to take even the Oracle down. But these things were far away. For now she was planning to use them and make sure that they wouldn't think of betraying her. For she could easily enact her vengeance without their help, but they needed her.

"That sounds like a reasonable plan, but how can I trust you?" She asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.

She saw how Cedric's face contorted in surprise. So he was planning on betraying her after all. Not that she was surprised. A snake like him would always have a backup plan. She continued to taunt him, telling them exactly why they shouldn't betray her.

"I don't need you anymore." She said softly, making Miranda and Elyon look concerned. "I can enact my revenge without you, though it would take some time. But you need me, don't you?"

She could easily see that Cedric wasn't planning on agreeing with her but she didn't care. She had him exactly where she wanted him.

"Let's make a compromise." She said calmly, a hint of a laughter in her voice. "I will stay and help you, if you vow to me on every Heart of every planet that you will never betray me."

Elyon, Caleb and Miranda looked questioningly at Cedric, who was apparently chewing his tongue. She had seen through him and she was sure he was trying to worm himself out of the compromise. She smiled when he bowed his head in defeat.

"Very well." He said.

She noticed the smirk on his face. He seemed to have found a way to betray her, even with the vow. Will remained silent as he made the vow, wondering if she would see the opening Cedric would create.

"I vow on every Heart of every world that I will not betray you unless you betray me." Cedric said, smiling at her.

She silently applauded for him. That was a smart way to worm yourself out of the vow. If she sneezed on him he could see it as betrayal and kill her, without fearing the vow. Too bad for him that she knew a way to stop that, though it would bind her to them. Not that she cared. She would show them who would truly write the laws for their little group. Caleb, Miranda and Elyon repeated the vow after some encouragement of Cedric. Will smirked as she saw Cedric's triumphant smirk. Not only could he betray her at any moment he pleased, he could also kill the others. Too bad that she was going to stop him.

"I vow on every Heart of every world that I will not betray you unless you betray me." Will said with pleasure as she saw Cedric's smirk falter. "This also means that if you betray one another, you betray me."

The deed was done and now she had a new team at her disposal. One that still needed to know who was actually leading them, but they would soon come to understand. She had a natural gift when it came to leadership and they would follow her in no time. Especially if she managed to tame her darkness flame. She had to give Taranee some credit. Reading helped a lot.

She went to sit at the table, taking the head of the table as her seat. Again she noticed Cedric's glare and she only suspected that this was his seat. Keyword: Was. She gestured them to sit with mock courtesy and slowly they took their seats. Caleb taking the place right of her while Cedric, though grudgingly, took the place on her left. Miranda took the place next to him and Elyon the place next to Caleb. Women came in, carrying platters with food and drinks and the group started their dinner. Will ate slowly while checking the whole group. She knew that Caleb was no problem. He was now only hurt because he was more a play toy than Cornelia's real lover but he would return to his rebellious self in no time. She just hoped her darkness would have grown enough by then to infect him. Elyon would still keep her at arm's length but Will knew that even with her current level of darkness, she could infect Elyon and it would only be a matter of time before she would follow her completely. Cedric and Miranda would proof to be a challenge. Though Miranda wasn't openly challenging her, Will would not think of keeping her eyes of her. She could easily crawl around her and try to take over, something she did not wish to happen. Cedric was already trying to beat her but he should also feel that his battle was futile. She would win without trying. Cedric was no man who could lead. True leaders were born, not made.

Dinner went calmly and Will contemplated on her wings. She wanted to get rid of them before training because she wanted to return to her human form before training. She did not need to see the burnt stubs of her wings when she transformed back. When the maids came to gather the plates Will stopped one of them.

"Get me some more bandages, a thick leather strap and a sword." She told her, the maid only nodding her head in fear and hurried away.

Will saw the confused looks of her allies and she shrugged.

"There is just one thing I need you to do before we return to our beds." She said calmly, already laying down the laws.

She could see Cedric wanting to disobey, but thanks to the vow, he could not for it would be the same as betraying her in her eyes and Cedric knew that.

"My wings. Caleb, I want you to cut them off from their roots. Miranda and Elyon, you will bandage my back and if you wish, you can heal it as well. If you heal it, then just change the bandage around my stomach."

"From the root?" Caleb asked concerned. "But Will, that means that I have to skin your back."

Will's eyes became cold as she stared at him.

"I don't care. They need to be gone." She replied coldly.

"I can always rip them off, you know." Cedric said with a grin, though he seemed the only one who thought this idea was funny.

Elyon and Miranda were looking in disgust and shock at Will while Caleb only looked in concern. Couple of pussies. Will grinned at Cedric, shaking her head.

"I don't want to give you that pleasure of actually succeeding once." She taunted, making Cedric's smirk turn into a scowl.

At that moment the maid came running with the things Will ordered her to get. Will got up and gestured Caleb, Miranda and Elyon to follow her to one of the empty rooms she had passed on her way to the dining room. Once there Will turned around, her back facing Caleb, and pulled her top off, again trying to repress a cry as the wound in her stomach acted up. The place where her wings were, was completely numb but that wouldn't mean that she wouldn't feel it if her skin was cut away. She nodded at Miranda and Elyon, who nodded in return, though both were not happy with the idea to see her back open. Will just hoped that she wouldn't faint of the pain.

"Caleb, once I've done the leather strap in my mouth you have to cut, understood?" She asked as she firmly grabbed the chair in front of her.

She heard a restrained sound of a yes and she closed her eyes while she placed the leather strap between her teeth. This was going to hurt a lot more than the stomach wound. Will waited patiently for Caleb to raise the sword, knowing he was still hesitating. A foreboding feeling told her that he had raised the sword and suddenly a piercing feeling cut through her. Tears sprung in her eyes while she cried in pain, the leather strap dousing her screams to almost nothing. The pain only increased as she felt a cool metal cut through her skin. The moment the metal no longer connected to her body she felt her legstremble and she let herself fall on her knees, trying to push the tears away that were forcing their way up. Elyon and Miranda immediately went to work, though Elyon was looking a little white. Will felt how something soft entered her body at the place where the sword had cut and she could feel how her skin was growing back. The pain remained longer and only when Elyon and Miranda finished healing she allowed herself to fall to the ground, breathing heavily.

She could hear Caleb mutter a string of curses and apologies. The door opened and closed and his voice had disappeared. Will only guessed that he had gone so she could put her top back on. The pain in her back was still there, though it was rapidly fading and Will heaved herself up, nearly falling again when now the pain of her stomach added to the new pain. She let out another cry in pain and she felt how two pair of hands caught her before she fell to the ground. She tried to shake the help away, but Miranda kept a strong hold on her and Will was too exhausted from the pain she had to endure to struggle much against it, while Elyon started to unravel the bandage around her stomach. She felt how a new bandage was put around her stomach and one around her chest.

"The bandage around your chest is to make sure that your new skin won't rip open while you're asleep." Elyon said with a trembling voice.

Will had to admit that she was impressed by her. She had at least thought Elyon would faint. Not that that was her main concern now. Her vision was blurring and her breathing was raspy. She felt like fainting but tried to steady herself. She would not faint again. She placed her hands on Miranda's shoulders and forced herself up, swaying a bit as she went. She saw Miranda cringe a bit when her fingers duck into the girl's skin but she didn't say a thing. Miranda even helped her into her top, something Will only appreciated.

The moment she had her top back on she called on her new powers to transform back to her human form. A light lit the room for a moment before Will let out a cry of pain when a wave of new pain struck from her back and stomach. She nearly fell forward if it wasn't for Miranda and Elyon to catch her.

"Easy there." Miranda said a little trembling. "We got you."

Will didn't reply and steadied herself. She turned slowly around and saw a piece of skin laying on the ground, with two burnt stubs of wings, bathing in a puddle of blood. She wrinkled her nose in disgust and stepped over it. She could sense the unspoken question as she neared the door.

"You can burn it for all I care." She said before nearly falling through the door.

She had to bite through it. This pain would fade away and would only make her stronger. She just needed some time. And time she would get. Once she was fully healed her training could commence and then only two more things were needed to complete her revenge. One which could be acquired after a month of training while the other would force her to return to Earth on a very special day.

Despite the pain a smirk grew on her lips. Her revenge was coming and she would savor every moment of it.

_**[A/N] End of chapter 4. As you've noticed Will knows about her little darkness flame, of which more explanation will come later on in the story. She also seems to be very clever huh? Maybe it's a side effect of going evil. If that's true than neither Phobos nor Nerissa were evil. I mean come on! They had so many flaws that I lost count! Anyway, she still seems to need two things for her revenge, but what? Find out in the following chapters.**_

_**Please don't forget to review!**_


	6. Chapter 5 Rulings

_**[A/N] Okay, my forgetfulness is terrible. Though only one person noticed it so either you people just accepted it or didn't even think about it. But the reason why I.T.C.H. has their full powers and are still capable of transforming is simply because I'm nicking things off the comic. In the comic they can (apparently?) transform on their own, without the Heart, on instinct. .H. figured that out in this story. Also, even though Will is the Heart of Kandrakar, the Aurameres have bonded with the other Guardians and thus belong to them, giving Will no control over them. Besides, that would be no fun.**_

_**Now on with the story!**_

**Chapter 5 Rulings.**

She had snickered. She had laughed outrageously loud. She couldn't believe her luck. She had been lying straightforward and none of them had seen the small lie. They could easily take their revenge without her. Just as easy as she could do it without them. The whole training wasn't really necessary at all. She could do it right now if she wanted to, as long as she avoided a confrontation, four on one. But that would not be satisfying enough, nor would it give her opportunities to lay waste to others. So, as long as the others stayed ignorant, she could easily get what she wanted. And after all, having some close followers wasn't that bad at all.

Will had seated herself in the dining room, getting her early breakfast before her first day of training would begin. Caleb was already getting ready for the training while Elyon and Miranda entered the room, looking sleepily and yawning a bit. They greeted halfheartedly and Will nodded in return, being lost in thoughts. She had been pondering on her luck and trying to find a way to push Cedric into the ground. She could not stand it when someone tried to overrule her. She hadn't allowed it with Cornelia, though she had been too unconfident to openly fight it until Cornelia had taken up the façade of accepting her. But she would not allow Cedric to get even a glimmer of hope. The last she needed was a row with the one who played a key part in her becoming stronger.

Her thoughts slowly wandered to the strange thing she had noticed days ago. It was when she was still bedridden when she had noticed it. It was the same feeling of revenge, hatred and anger that had been flowing through her from the moment of betrayal but it was then that also a strange feeling of calmness settled within her. As if she started to control those feelings. Her head became clearer and she felt a strange urge to look at herself. Even though it was only hurting her, she had gotten up and walked to her closet, which not only held some medieval clothes but a mirror as well. It was then that she'd seen it. It was the flame that indicated the soul of a person. Normally it was invisible, only capable to be seen by master magicians, or that was what the books had told her. It would only turn visible for every magical creature when something drastic had happened to that person, enough to change him. The flame had been nothing more than a flicker on top of a match but it confirmed her suspicions. She was turning evil. Frankly she didn't feel concerned. She actually started to feel a strange sense of victory. Not only would she take revenge, but she would also show them what being evil really meant.

It also occurred to her that Phobos wasn't that evil. He hid himself behind his big army, but it was more because his army was unchecked and Cedric's way of leading it, that Phobos seemed so evil. The almighty Prince was nothing more than a little boy, playing with his toy soldiers. A smile played on her lips. Nerissa had been eviler than Phobos and even she was flawed to no end.

Cedric had finally entered and Will felt how his eyes immediately went to her. She could practically feel his anger, making her only smile more. She watched how Cedric slowly got to the table, taking the same seat as he did three days ago. He wasn't even her right hand. A low snicker escaped her lips and she noticed how Cedric's gaze rested on her once more. She looked at his steel blue eyes and saw his resent and rebellious thoughts. Perhaps she was more skilled in reading people than she first thought.

She smirked as she got up. She could have a row with him during their practice. Caleb was waiting for her and she couldn't continue putting off her training. She needed to get stronger, no matter the cost.

Cedric held his glare on the Guardian leader as she slowly left the room, still a bit stiff. He doubted that her pain was completely gone, but he hoped that it was hurting her a lot. That was maybe a small revenge on what she did to him. Only three days had passed after the Guardian leader had made them make that sickening vow. Cedric still felt his anger when he thought of it. Not only did he had to try and find a way to wriggle himself free from the vow, the wretched Guardian had vowed as well, making it impossible for him to betray her or any of the others. His anger only grew as he thought of the redhead. The little girl was barely out of bed and already thinking that she could easily overrule him. That she was in control of their small group.

A smirk grew on his face. The girl was now off to train with Caleb and he knew what Caleb was planning for her. He knew she had told him what she expected from her training and he and Caleb had adjusted their training to her wishes, knowing that her powers should grow quickly. And, Cedric had to admit, it was true that if he only trained her heavily on magic, that her body would destroy itself the more she would grow. She was not the same as Elyon after all, who was born with a Heart. Her power had manifested itself as the element Quintessence, the most dangerous of all, and if her body didn't become stronger than she would die by the power she was holding. It had irked him that she had known this. He had hoped that she would have declined Caleb's training and that she would eventually destroy herself.

But that didn't matter. Caleb's training would drain a lot of her energy and Cedric knew that she was yet to know about every aspect of her element, including the fact that she could get a limitless energy supply once she learned how to absorb the energy from her surroundings. And seeing that she didn't know only meant that Cedric would have an easy time punishing her for her insolence. He was the stronger one, at least for now, and if he could get that into the little girl's head, he would be the one to conquer Metamoor once they would attack Phobos and his allies. And the redhead would be his strongest pawn.

He shook his head as he started to eat his breakfast. He would deal with the little insolent brat after lunch. Now he had to focus on Miranda's and Elyon's training, knowing that it would take him a while before he would get them to a higher level.

Her eyes had immediately captured him the moment he had entered. He had tensed when he'd seen Will sit at his spot. Well, it was no longer his spot… Miranda wasn't sure. She had seen the redheaded girl in action before this whole fiasco and, even though she wouldn't admit it out loud, she had marveled at the strength of spirit the girl seemed to posses. The natural aura of leadership that seemed to hug her. She had never seen something like that before. The only people who had set an example for her, to show her what leadership was, had been Phobos and Cedric. Phobos never stroke her as a leader, being more someone who threatened those who didn't respect him and Cedric was automatically respected but only because the guards knew about his snake form and were all afraid that he would eat them. Neither of them seemed to posses that strange feeling that Will seemed to beam. Miranda had to admit that the feeling had changed from the last time she had gotten a good look at the girl. The last time was during a fight, when the redhead was still her enemy, and the feeling gave her some peace of mind. Now the feeling only made her feel humble and maybe a tingle of fear crept through her when she saw the smile on the girl's face.

She softly wondered if it was the girl's natural gift to be this intimidating, even though Miranda knew she could have a fair fight with her, maybe even win.

Another thing that scared her slightly was the fact that something else was coming off Will. A feeling that she could recognize from the times she was near Phobos. It was just as strong and it made her forget slightly about feelings like compassion, remorse, regret and love. It was a strange feeling that she was not keen off. It was as if that feeling was trying to grasp her heart. To control her completely and Miranda wondered if Will was doing this on purpose or if she was ignorant to it. All Miranda knew was that it had something to do with the flame of darkness that she has seen grow over the days.

"Miranda. Elyon. Follow me. We don't have all day."

Miranda looked up surprised. She hadn't noticed that she'd finished her breakfast or that Cedric had finished his. She saw Elyon's curious gaze wandering towards her and she just nodded. She left her tray and got up, silently following Cedric to God knew what place he had picked out for training. Her gaze sometimes wandered to Elyon, who had quickly caught up and who was now walking next to her. Miranda hadn't seen a change in Elyon, not even when Will was around but she was wondering if that was because of Elyon's power as a Heart, or perhaps that she just didn't show the changes. Or maybe Miranda hadn't noticed them. But what truly intrigued her about the princess was how eager she'd been on getting revenge. As if she had been longing to get it anyway and now only used her brother and ex best friend as a target. She could not understand it, seeing how nice the princess had been when she was first introduced. The princess hadn't showed any hard feelings, unless the Guardians were mentioned. But maybe, maybe Miranda was wrong. The small, almost hidden glares the princess threw at their unofficial leader told her that Elyon wasn't too happy with Will around. She probably only accepted Will because it was Cedric who had ordered them to save her in the first place.

She didn't get why Cedric wanted to save Will, while all he did was trying to undermine her and trying to subdue her to his will. And even Miranda could notice that it wasn't working. The redhead was way too strong than to be subdued by just fear for the snake. She wasn't afraid and that was what Miranda feared about her.

"Miranda?"

Miranda looked up, right into the misty grey blue eyes of Elyon. There was something of concern swimming in those eyes, but also something that Miranda had recognized in Will's eyes, though it was almost unnoticeable in Elyon's eyes. Was Will's darkness infecting them already? Was that possible?

"Mmm?"

She saw an uncertainty flicker in the grey eyes of the slightly younger girl and she wondered what would make the girl doubt. In their weeks together in this castle, Miranda had been more or less forced to explain Elyon the complete truth. About her brother, what Cedric had been doing all this time, what her actual purpose was and how they had been forced to lie to her, all thinking that they would get a better life if Phobos had stolen her power. And to Miranda's biggest surprise, the girl had only smiled sadly, stating that after finding out that her brother and her ex best friend were having a relationship all those other things seemed to be unsurprising. While Miranda was wondering how all the things she had told Elyon couldn't be shocking, the princess had only smiled and said she forgave her. That was perhaps the last day Miranda had seen a real smile on Elyon's face. After that day Elyon had started to visit Will more often, watching her while she slept and Cedric had warned her that the growing darkness in Will would affect them all. First Caleb and Elyon, who were the purest of them, then Miranda and lastly Cedric. The last part Cedric hadn't mentioned but Miranda just knew that it was something Cedric feared. The only thing that was scaring Miranda was that she could feel Will's evil pull on her, almost more than Phobos's. She thought she was more resistant. Was she truly not that evil?

"Do you have the feeling that something is trying to take a hold of you? Something…sinister?"

The words were whispered and Miranda sensed a twinge of fear within Elyon. So she was changing. And she seemed to notice it too. She wondered if she should lie. Would it be wise to tell the truth?

"Yes…" she whispered back, hoping Cedric wouldn't hear her. "Cedric says it's because of Will."

"Is she really that dangerous?"

The reply was hushed as well, concern and fear laced in the voice. Miranda thought about Elyon's words and about the vow they had made days ago. Cedric had explained to her how it worked but she didn't understand much of it. The whole matter gave her a big headache in fact. But she knew one thing. They were safe from Will as long as the vow stayed and there was no way to break such vow.

She shook her head, hoping to reassure Elyon.

"No. At least not for us."

Elyon nodded but she quickly seemed to be lost in thoughts again. Miranda looked with curiosity at Elyon. Elyon was perhaps the purest of them all and she would be easily affected by Will's evil, growing quicker eviler than Miranda would, and she wondered how long it would take for Elyon to go and slaughter a village to test her powers. Miranda knew Cedric had done it sometimes and she was pretty sure that Will would get the same idea. Collateral damage was only for the greater good, or at least, that was the impression Will was starting to give her.

They had rounded, for what felt to her, like the hundredth corner when they arrived at a rather large room. Tables were standing at the sides of the room and the window was open, making the wind blow through the room. The sun was just trying to reach the tops of the trees and Miranda saw how Cedric turned his back to the window, facing them.

"Today I'm only going to check on how strong you are. That way I know what to teach you first." He said.

Miranda nodded. Doubting about the future wouldn't bring her anything and she needed to focus right now. She just had to trust Will, even if every fiber in her being was warning her, pleading her to run away.

The sun had been rising steadily and she hadn't disappointed him. In fact, she had even impressed him and she even went to such lengths that it concerned him. She was pushing herself too much, she would collapse if he wouldn't stop her now.

"Will. You're going to fast, slow down." He told her calmly.

A glare shot at him, one that made one she shot him in the Oubliette seem like a lovely gaze. But he didn't let it faze him. He had to be strong and he grabbed her arm, which was now sloppily hanging next to her body, and slowed her down. They had been running for an hour and a half by now, running on the castle walls, and the only noise Caleb could hear were Will's quickened and raspy breaths, indicating that she was about to faint. Yet she didn't show any signs of wanting to stop. She seemed to be planning on going till she dropped. He had known that she would continue, that she would show a condition he hadn't sought behind her. Even if he took her swimming into consideration, she was running way too long than what was good for her. He pulled a bit harder, forcing her to stop as he stopped himself. She panted heavily but still managed to pull her arm from his grip, while he just looked at her, concern filling him and perhaps a sliver of regret. He could have saved her. He could have stopped the others. He at least felt like he should.

He saw Will swaying a bit and he moved quickly to grab her shoulders. She didn't react to it and he slowly helped her to sit down, making sure she would breathe easily. He could see her dark look and his thoughts returned to those he once counted as close friends. He had truly thought that the Guardians, all of them, were to be trusted, but he never had counted on something like this. For example, he found it hard to believe that Hay Lin, sweet Hay Lin with her crazy thoughts of fashion, who loved to draw or to design, would take part in the betrayal set up by Cornelia and Phobos. He had also never thought that Taranee would betray Will. She always seemed to be Will's best friend and that she had betrayed Will, was something that Caleb just couldn't grasp. Irma and Cornelia…Well maybe they were the ones that were most predictable. Neither of them took good to leadership and Cornelia had been openly against Will, while Irma only sneered and placed witty comments. But it still hurt him that they had stooped so low as to betray Will. To him they were maybe worse than Phobos. Because those who betray friends are worse than thrash and if Caleb had had his way, he would have dragged them all to Will, pulling their hair and placing his sword on their necks, making sure that they wouldn't use their magic. He would have forced them to look at her and apologize and then perhaps kill them…

Did he just really think of killing the Guardians? Where did that thought come from? His gaze went back to Will, who was now almost breathing on a normal pace and again he felt the strange pulling on his heart and his hand went unconsciously to his heart. Cedric had mentioned something about Will's darkness affecting them, but was it that strong? He could remember this feeling from the times he was close to Phobos and his concern only grew along with his rage.

Will wasn't meant for evil and only because of the betrayal she was falling into darkness and he was so desperately trying to pull her out of it. Every time he went to bring her some food, she merely accepted it and waved him off like a mere servant. He had once yelled at her because of the way she was acting towards him, but the only effect of that was that she had smiled and snickered, telling him that she found his reaction funny and that, if he wanted, could stay with her. It was as if she had been testing him. Not that he had thought of that back then. He had managed to make her smile and she allowed him near her and maybe he had been able to slow down her process of becoming evil.

But that was, if he recalled correctly, one of the few times that he thought she was lightening up. Because, despite him being near her, she had grown darker over the days and he himself had been struggling against the wavering feeling that she was beaming. The feeling to give into his own darkness. He didn't want to and he wanted to pull Will out of it, but he knew that as long as the Guardians were walking around, Will would want vengeance. So he would help her and then pull her back. He knew his thoughts were childish and perhaps in some way, cute, but he truly believed he could as long as he could keep up his internal fight with Will's darkness. He could proof her that he couldn't be tainted by her and that he could pull her back. He just hoped he wouldn't be too late when he had to.

"Caleb?"

He focused again and saw Will getting up, still swaying a little but she steadied herself almost immediately. Her gaze was demanding and his own rebel started to surface again. He was not going to obey a redhead with an attitude just so she could faint because she pushed herself.

"I stopped you because else you would faint." He said coarsely but to his surprise Will didn't snarl. She just nodded and swept some sweat from her forehead. So she knew she was overdoing it.

She looked over the castle walls, the light of the rising sun highlighting her cherry red hair that swayed a bit in the morning wind and enhancing a beauty Caleb hadn't bothered to take a notice of. It was not really that surprising. On Earth, Will always fancied male clothing, never trying to dress something distinctly feminine. Maybe that was why his attention went to Cornelia, who knew how to exploit her body with her fashion sense, seeing how her curves always seemed to be hugged with perfection by her clothes. But now…Now Will was wearing slim fitting black trousers with a chainmail over a very short white top, too short for Metamoorian standards. Her top had exposed her belly, which was flat and the scar of Cornelia's most hurtful attack was still visible, being a twisted line that went over her stomach. The chainmail was so that she would have extra weight and which would only help to increase her stamina and upper body strength. Further she had some white bindings loosely around her arms. Caleb supposed she would use them to wipe away any additional sweat that would drip past her. Some black shoes concluded the outfit. He had never known that Will was this feminine or this good looking and he found himself surprised when she had walked up to him for today's training. He couldn't exactly make any comment on her outfit for he was a bit too surprised to say the least.

"Are you going to make me run laps till lunch or are you planning on doing other things as well?" Will asked him.

Caleb could not detect any emotion in the question but he gave her a smile nonetheless. She had every right to ask it as he had only given her the chainmail and told her to put it on during their training, not looking to excessively at her, before walking away and gesturing her that she should follow him.

"No, we're continuing with pushups and sit ups." He said. "After that we'll resume our run. We will keep this up for a week or so."

Will creased a red eyebrow, making him grin even more. Surely she was wondering why they would just train like this without her being taught how to use a sword, something he knew Will would fancy.

"And do you care to enlighten me to why we only continue this for a week?" She asked him, sounding slightly annoyed.

Caleb didn't let his smirk waver and gestured her to lay down and start her pushups. She only crossed her arms and gave him an interrogating gaze, one that made him falter to her request. He sighed and rolled his eyes, as if he had the most obvious reason to do so.

"After that we'll add sword fighting to the training. I first want to build up your stamina and physical strength. If I taught you right away, we would probably have stopped thirty minutes ago."

There was a sigh and a roll of the eyes before will dropped herself on her hands and feet. She looked expectantly at him and he grinned. He could see the old Will. The same little pest that thought she knew everything better than him. At least she was listening, even though it was because her own want to train. He doubted that, if she didn't want to train, he would be having such an easy time in training her.

He let himself drop on his hands and feet as well and smiled challengingly at her. She only responded with a darker look, though Caleb thought he saw a flicker of joy in those darkened eyes.

"I'll count, you follow." He said, getting a brisk nod from Will. "One, two, three…"

Her muscles still burnt from her heavy training this morning. She had nearly cheered when Caleb announced that they would leave it for today and would go for lunch. She had been trying her best and she only wished she would grow quicker. Training like this would take long, but she also knew that all good things come to those who wait. So maybe it wasn't that bad too wait. This way she could not only train her body and magic, but also her mental qualities as well. She needed to become more patient anyway. There was one thing she didn't like about Caleb's training. The feeling he gave her. It felt as if he was trying to safe her, trying to stop her growing darker, something she wanted to become.

She shook the nasty feeling off as she pulled her newly gained chainmail off her body. She would start carrying it a full day after a week, but now she had the feeling that she could use any agility with her training with the big snake. He had been glaring at her for days on end and she presumed that he was going to use this training as a form of payback.

A smirk played on her lips as she stood still in front of the door that Elyon had told her to go after lunch. If Cedric wanted to play a game, then she would be all to glad to play with him.

Cedric couldn't repress a snarl when the door opened to reveal a thin redhead who was dressed in what he couldn't call the proper training garment, if he was even allowed to call it garment. The white top she wore was ridiculously short, just barely stopping beneath her breasts and the slim black pants hang loosely around her hips. The bandages around her arms were only useful if he decided to slice her, but else he saw it as useless accessory. She even seemed so bold as to walk into the room without shoes, something he was sure she wore this morning. Cedric knew that this was not considered as proper, not even by Earthian standards. The only thing that made him smile inwardly was the scar that almost shone from her belly. She deserved every scar. He had been so good to take her in and let her be healed by Elyon and Miranda and she repays him by trying to take his place as rightful ruler.

Cedric's snarl changed slowly to a smirk when he saw how slowly the girl moved. Caleb must had been bullying her during their training. Cedric made a mental note to congratulate the little boy. He wasn't that soft as he thought he would be.

"Had a nice lunch?" He questioned, when he saw how her gaze went to him darkening the longer she looked at him.

"Delicious." She replied, her lips parted into a smirk. "Too bad there wasn't any snake meat though. I had thought that Miranda and Elyon together would have been strong enough to get me some."

Clever. The jest was low and it strangely made anger flow his veins. This girl just existed to irk him. He hissed unconsciously and only saw her smirk widen. He would quickly rip that smirk off her face.

He channeled his magic, letting it flow through his veins. He felt his arms becoming longer and stronger. His legs merged together as one and grew only more and more. His torso broadened and he felt his muscles building. He roared out of delight. This was true power, something the witch in front of him would quickly come to understand.

Once his transformation was done he looked down on her. She was even smaller than he could remember. She was looking at him with a bored look, something that hurt Cedric somewhere within. Everyone, even Phobos, had showed a certain surprise and awe when he transformed in front of them the first time, but this girl looked at him as if she'd seen nothing impressive.

"Did you transform like this for Phobos too?" She questioned. "When did he tell you when he became bored of it?"

The smirk on her lips was challenging, mocking him. He had enough of her. She had been treading on dangerous grounds the moment she had opened her eyes and he would make sure she would close them.

"Very funny." He remarked dryly. "But you are forgetting a couple of things."

Her brow creased and she looked at him as if he was crazy. How easy it would be for him to snap her neck now. Just one lunge…But that accursed vow was stopping him. He would die before he had even hurt her more than a poke.

"Oh? Tell me snake butt. What am I missing?" She sneered in return, her smirk not lowering.

He lunged forward and curled around her, his body not yet touching her fragile human one. His face was in front of hers and his eyes sparked with mirth while hers were only two pools of dark brown mud, hardening when he laid his gaze on her.

"First of all, you are no longer a leader. Just a lost soul wandering through darkness." He said, slowly hissing his last 's', making sure she would hear it echo.

Her face hardened considerably but she remained silent as he continued.

"Secondly, this is my training. You will do as I please and not the other way around, princess." He said, sarcastically adding the princess comment, making her glare even colder.

"And last, your power is nothing now. It might be impressive in your Guardian form, but your human form is weak and fragile."

To enforce his last statement he swept his arm in her stomach, making her fly over his tail and through the room. She landed hard on the floor and he was laughing softly, his hisses being clearly heard throughout the room. She would know who the real leader was.

His happier thoughts, as well as his mirth, were being interrupted when the redhead crawled back up, softly laughing herself. Cedric felt the coldness spreading from her as her laugh continued. Her eyes shone with pure defiance and joy, as if she was enjoying this. Her hair was even more ruffled than it was before, giving her a slightly crazy impression.

"I knew you would try this." She said, her voice soft while mirth and malice were dripping from it.

Lightning crackled around her, making her hair move by the pure energy she was releasing. Cedric knew it couldn't harm him much, seeing that this was not even near her Guardian level of power, but it was impressive nonetheless. She slowly advanced on him, but Cedric stayed put. He would not bow for someone like her.

When she was close enough for him to whack her with his tail, her magic started to crackle more. It seemed as if she was coating herself with electricity and Cedric started to feel a bit worried. Her power was greater than he had anticipated and she was maybe strong enough to hurt him a little.

"It's true that my human form is weak and fragile." She said, her voice still as soft as before. "That's what this training is for."

Cedric creased an eyebrow, or would if he had one, and looked questioningly at her. She was way too calm and she didn't seem winded from his attack. What was wrong with this girl?

"But that doesn't mean that the Heart can't change me."

His eyes opened wide. How could he be so stupid? He was the one who told Elyon, Miranda and Caleb that the Heart had merged with her. How could he forget that the Heart would change her? The Heart would want to protect her, so it would increase her physical and mystical powers so that she didn't need to suffer again. He was pulled out of his thoughts when she grabbed his tail, giving him a light but still hurting shock. He hissed in annoyance and batted her away, this time harder. She flew back once more and now he heard the satisfying sound of her lungs being forced to push out all the air that was stored inside them. Yet she crawled back up, a sliver of blood running down her mouth. The smirk on her face was frightening as well as the cold pleasure that swam in her eyes. This girl wasn't meant to be this intimidating. He was bigger, stronger. He could squash her like a bug. So why was he feeling this intimidated? It wasn't making sense. No one ever intimidated him, because he knew he was stronger, better. Not even Phobos had managed to do that, so why could this little, fragile girl do it where so many others had failed?

A girlish snicker filled the room. One that didn't seem to fit her any longer, but which seemed to create a colder atmosphere.

"I hope your training schedule for today is to see how strong I am." Her voice echoed through the crackles the lightning made around her. "Which is good. After the betrayal I haven't had a chance to measure them."

A lightning bolt shot at him, but he blocked it. It was stinging a bit and he bit his tongue. The girl was becoming more of annoyance than when she was a Guardian. He slammed his fist in her, making her gag and cough up more blood. When this happened Cedric saw a small pink light shining from the little pest. Immediately her eyes snapped up and for a second Cedric thought he saw lightning in those eyes. That thought quickly disappeared when a ghostly smile was created by her lips. A new lightning attack coursed through him, but this time it seemed stronger than the previous ones. Was she holding back or was the Heart only pumping more magical might into her the more he injured her?

He staggered back and looked at the girl who was now laughing loudly. Was she crazy? A shiver of fear, a feeling Cedric had thought never to experience again, ran through his whole body and he cursed inwardly. This should be impossible. This girl was exerting such control and calmness, while filling his being with fear and respect. The latter was something that Cedric wasn't happy about. He wasn't respecting her, merely acknowledging her skill of exerting pressure.

She stopped her laughing and smirked at him, challenging him even more. This girl was crazy, plain crazy. She should be scared of him. She should know how much pain he could inflict on her, yet she stood there. Her shoulders and back straightened and a smirk on her lips. She advanced on him, her lightning now being focused to her hands, creating two large orbs of lightning in either hand.

He braced himself for the attack, thinking she would fire the two orbs. To his surprise she relaxed, making the orbs crackle randomly and finally dispersed into harmless sparks, filling the room. He looked surprised at her, while she only seemed to observe the sparks. This girl was not normal. His gaze automatically went to the place where her flame was supposed to be. To his surprise he couldn't find it. It was completely gone but Cedric could feel that she hadn't returned to the light. Did she know of the flame? How could he know gauge her evilness now? How could he compare it to his own now that hers had gone invisible?

"And lastly. True leaders are born, just like true followers." She said, her voice hushed but it was telling him enough.

She was still mocking him, telling him he would never be a good leader. He felt his anger rise again and he clenched his fists. He noticed how she casted a sideways glance on him, her eyes mocking him. Her smirk challenging him.

"What does that mean?" He asked, his voice laced with a dangerous undertone.

She simply shrugged before doing her hands into her pockets and turning her back on him, looking through the window to the forest.

"Caleb will never obey you, not even when he's persuaded to darkness." She started and Cedric could feel her smirking. "Miranda looks for someone in who she can put her loyalty. Someone who would not fail her expectations. Someone to show her the way she needed to follow."

Cedric scoffed. He knew she was right and he knew that Miranda's loyalty had been switching from him, to Caleb, to Elyon and back to him. Maybe she had shifted her loyalty once again. Only this time to the infuriating redhead in front of him.

"Elyon is a confused sheep, lost in a flock of wolves." Will continued, her voice carrying something what could be a laugh. "Now she's following you like a little puppy, but once she is past her female hormones she will start thinking."

Cedric gritted his teeth. Was she just summing up all of his oversights? Taunting him to break his vow? A laugh escaped her and Cedric tried to control his anger. He had to keep himself under control, knowing she was only trying to destroy him through the vow.

"Let's face it. You are more of a lackey than a real leader. An oak does not bow to a snake."

It was the nonchalant shrug that followed the statement that made his blood boil. The little witch had some nerves. He would eat her alive and claim her powers. His blood was pumping through his body and he let out a growl. She kept her back turned to him and in an instant he lunged at her, wanting to break every single bone in her useless body.

He could feel how something was pulling him. How that something would probably rip him apart if he continued, but he ignored it. The ignorant brat had been stepping crossing him one time too many and he would smash her to a pulp.

Right before he would actually manage to grab her, he saw how she smirked at him. An instant later she had disappeared and he shot further, stopping barely before the open window. The feeling that had increased in the time that he tried to attack her started to decrease and he panted heavily, trying to control his anger again. He had nearly killed himself, all because of some childish taunting. How did she manage to get him on edge like that? Normally he was so cool and calm, but it seemed as if the sight of the redhead alone was enough to make his blood boil and the sound of her voice only created thoughts of how to kill her.

"You should be happy. I can't use you when you're dead."

He froze. He had forgotten that she was the one who had teletransported away, who had saved him. He hadn't even known she could. The sentence she spoke…He was right. She used them to her own account. It didn't matter if they told her what to do during training, it was her who would eventually stop the training or make them continue even longer. She was already holding all strings and he had been too dense to see it. Her darkness was already influencing Elyon and Caleb, something that he couldn't manage. She had more control over herself than he had. And she was letting him alive, to live with this torment. The knowledge that she was better than him.

He let his head drop in defeat, not turning around to face her. He would only see a triumphant smirk.

"Training dismissed." He said coarsely.

When his head dropped Will let herself smile. A true smile. True, she had expected more of a challenge from Cedric, she could now call herself the unofficial leader of their little group. Miranda was already swaying to her favor and Elyon would be tainted enough with her darkness before she started to use that brain of hers. And Caleb trying desperately to pull her back to the light, while fighting her tainting darkness. It was all a matter of time before the last three would submit to her without any hesitation. And now with Cedric already under her thumb, she could easily get the rest.

She left the room, snickering softly to herself. Cedric had played his little game, but she got the prize.

_**[A/N] Well, that was a nice ending, wasn't it? Cedric lost completely, Miranda is doubting herself more and more and Caleb is hopelessly trying to fight Will's darkness. I didn't include Elyon's pov for the sole reason that she is still following her hormones and with that, she is crazed of Cedz (Brrr) So she will view him as a leader, for now. Once she sees how Will controls him she will follow harmlessly. The girl was never that smart…**_

_**Also, I do love a sadistic Will, but it was a little hard to make her that in this chapter. Though I hope you liked it.**_

_**Review!**_


	7. Chapter 6 Push

**Chapter 6 Push**

A month had passed and there was no progress. Well, there was progress in her training, as well in the training of Elyon and Miranda, but there was no progress in submitting to her. Cedric had tried to fight back in the few sessions afterwards, but he had finally submitted to her. It had been a pain but the snake was finally listening to her like he should. He was listening better to her than he did to Phobos.

No, her problem lay with Elyon, Miranda and Caleb.

Elyon's hormones were diminishing and she was finally seeing that Cedric might not hold all her answers. Will knew Elyon was wondering if she would ever become Queen. If it was wise to stay with her. And she knew that Elyon was worrying about the darkness that Will was now able to spread consciously. But Will knew Elyon's biggest flaw. She was no leader. She might be a princess at birth and 'meant' to become Queen, but she was nothing more than a simple follower. The girl was too unconfident, too naïve to be a good leader. And that would be the way to make Elyon completely obedient to her.

Miranda was doubting. She had been doubting all these weeks. Will had noticed that she was starting to act more submissive but she was still doubting. If she found out that Elyon was starting to think straight, those two might become a problem. But then again, Miranda took greatly to Cedric. Both were born with a talent for shape shifting and Cedric seemed to be fond of her, in more ways than Will wanted to know. Perhaps she could use that. After all, they needed some males in the castle as well.

Talking about males, Caleb was becoming more annoying with each day. He was struggling against her darkness, even when she started to influence him consciously. Even dressing to a more favored attire, which uncovered a lot of her body, didn't make him melt for her. She knew he was attracted, but she also knew he was too stubborn to become so easily evil. Not with his history with Phobos and his "evil" mother. He was trying to show her that he wouldn't turn evil like his mother. What a pity that she was planning otherwise. Her eyes lit up in sudden realization. Caleb cared about the bond called family. Now that she thought about it, he had always seen them as his family. Hay Lin had been his little sister, Irma his almost brother only female, Cornelia his unfortunate mate, Taranee…Well, Caleb always cared about her and he saw her as the stubborn sister who would defy him at all cost. He was the one who had persuaded her to try and get closer to her mother, who was distancing her more and more from her all because of Professor Collins. She never hated the man, by all means. She had always thought that her mother was trying too hard to be a full family and she was actually happy when those things happened. Not that she told Caleb. He would only try to persuade her to get back with her mother. But this was his weak spot. He was always so protective of her and his heart would only be filled with hate if he saw how everyone, her 'friends' as well as her mother, had abandoned her. Without a single last doubt.

Will smiled in the darkness of her room. They all just needed that one little push. The sun would rise shortly and her own personal maid would come in to wake her up and tidy her bed. Will hadn't introduced herself to the staff like the others had done. She liked being a ghost in the castle. Just a few knew that she was around and she liked it that way. Those maids made up stories about her, some claiming she appeared on a dark cold night. They were scaring the other maids with the possible thought of her, something she wouldn't manage if they had all known her. She turned around in her bed. She wasn't feeling like getting up on her own. She could wait.

She was trembling. She was scared. How could the chief maid make her do this? Just because Kara was ill didn't mean that they had to send someone else to that room, did it? Lisa's hands trembled. She silently cursed the snake that made her mother come to this castle. She had joined her mother to ensure that she would be safe and not to leave her mother. But over the past month she had cursed herself. Not only was she longing to see her father, her little sister and little brother, but there was also a rumor going through the castle. A rumor about a girl, barely her age, who was said to be scarier than the snake. Who could kill with her gaze and could freeze with her smile. The few maids who had seen her all swore that they'd seen her glide through walls. And she, Lisa, was appointed to the room of said ghost because the usual maid Kara had fallen ill.

She breathed slowly as she walked through the rather deserted hallways. The other rooms of the Lords and Ladies were in another part of the castle, close to the kitchen and dining room and it was there a lot busier than the cold, damp and lonely hallways of this part of the castle. She wondered how the castle could be this cold in midsummer, but perhaps it was because none of the maids dared to venture here because of the ghost. Only Kara spoke in favor of the ghostly girl, telling them she never spoke much and had never harmed her. That gave Lisa a bit of reassurance, though she wished she knew more. First she was assigned to the snake's chambers, but after he had done an attempt to rape her she had grown scared of him. She hadn't voiced her concerns, in fear that the snake would kill her for it, or worse, really rape her; but then, the next day when she was getting ready to wake him up again, the head maid had come to stop her. She told her that an older woman was given her tasks on orders from the Lady, but Lisa never knew what Lady was implied.

Her breathing started to fasten when she could see the door to the godforsaken room. Would the ghost kill her because she wasn't Kara? Was she meant to bring her something to appease her? All these thoughts swam through her mind when suddenly she was standing in front of the dreaded door. The door itself seemed ordinary. No scratches, only very old wood that hadn't been preserved for a long time. The wood was rotting a bit but there was nothing more that would tell you that this was the room of a ghost.

She swallowed the amount of bile that had started to collected in her mouth and throat and took a deep breath. It was this or being reassigned to the snake who was probably out for her body.

Her sweaty hand took hold of the door knob and she twisted it slightly. The door slowly opened up and Lisa had to squint her eyes a bit. This room had a perfect view on the forest and the rising sun and she was blinded by the sudden light. The hallways had been dark and the rising sun was blinding. When her eyes had adjusted to the light she could see that the room wasn't that decorated to fit a Lady or Lord. It held just a simple wardrobe, a table and a chair, a fireplace and an old rug underneath the four-poster bed. It was the four-poster bed that betrayed that someone of importance was sleeping here.

Lisa exhaled softly, shivering in the unexplainable cold she was feeling. Was this the work of the ghost?

Her gaze wandered through the room and her eyes rested on a hump that was laying on the bed. She assumed that this was the one she needed to wake. The ghost. There was no way she could define the person laying in the bed, the light overshadowing her.

She took another shivering breath, hoping and praying to all Gods she knew that the ghost wouldn't be mad with her. She took a step inside the room and cautiously looked at the hump. She had the eerie feeling that someone was watching her. She took another step and slowly she made her way to the bed.

"Where is Kara?"

Lisa let out a shriek and jumped. She wasn't even halfway when the voice filled the room. The voice was cold and scary, but it was definitely feminine. Her eyes were focused on the person in the bed, who had pushed herself up to a sitting position, with her legs over the rim of the bed. Lisa could now see that the girl had short, blood red hair. Her hair was peeking all over and laid on her head in a chaos like manner. It gave her a terrifying expression. The girl's face was still covered in darkness, but Lisa could almost see a pair of eyes staring at her, as if the girl wanted to suck out Lisa's very soul.

Lisa trembled and swallowed more bile. She was sure she was getting nauseous and she wasn't sure for how long she would manage to stay conscious. She heard how a soft snicker escaped the girl's throat. Was it getting colder?

"K-K-Kara i-is s-s-s-sick M-Milady." She stuttered, her voice not even sounding as scared as she was feeling.

"I see." The voice said softly and Lisa was surprised that she couldn't see her breath already. She really thought it was getting colder with everytime the girl spoke.

"Are you scared of me?"

The voice seemed to be warmer than first but Lisa had no clue on how to react to it. What would happen to her if she told the truth? What would happen to her if the girl knew that she was lying? She just trembled and watched how the girl got from her bed. Her job was done, but why were her legs refusing service?

The girl only started to close in on her and now the light of the sun started to enlighten her face and body. She was dressed in a plain long shirt, something men would usually wear and her face was flawless. Her red slender eyebrows were knotted in an interesting pose, as if she was curious, her brown eyes shining from beneath them with long beautiful eyelashes that would make many men swoon. Her cheeks had a slight taint of red, only this was no makeup but just her natural color. Her full red lips had formed a smirk on her face that made Lisa shiver a bit. Not only did the smirk scare her, but the face of the girl made her jealous. She was sure that there would be no man who would say no to this girl.

"Not answering me, hum?"

The statement was whispered and Lisa started to look frankly for a good and agreeable answer.

"That's good. The question I asked was a rather tricky one. Should I lie or should I not, hum?"

Lisa didn't know if sighing was an appropriate thing to do, but she cracked a small smile of relief. So she didn't die just yet.

"What's your name?"

"Li-Lisa Milady." She answered scared.

"Ah yes, Cedric seems to have an eye out for you." The girl said.

Lisa might have been imagining it, but it seemed as if the girl was actually speaking with some venom in her voice when she spoke of the snake.

"He should know that I'm not that fond of guys who take advantage of girls, seeing that you and I are of the same age."

Was she the one who had made sure that she didn't have to attend to the snake any longer. Was she her savior?

"Could you help me with my shirt? My muscles are aching a bit and I would appreciate it if you helped me."

It was no order. It was more of a request but Lisa found that she couldn't resist. This girl, who was said to be crueler, scarier and meaner than all of the residents combined, was requesting rather than ordering. But she had heard of the one maid who dared to whisper something foul of this girl. Lisa had heard the screams and pleads. She just hoped that that would never happen to her.

Lisa slowly pulled the shirt off the girl and she noticed the scar on the stomach. It was a strange place to have a scar and Lisa silently wondered how it happened. The girl nodded at her and Lisa was making amends to leave when she spoke once more.

"If you don't mind, would you like to stay here while I get dressed. It is not often that I have some company and I believe that you still have to make my bed."

Lisa blushed at her forgetfulness and bowed at the girl, hoping to not have insulted her. The girl gave her a short nod before pulling a strange set of clothes out of the closet. A slim black pants with a very short white top. Some bindings were placed next to it on the table and some shoes were pulled out of the closet. Lisa returned her attention to the bed she was trying to make.

"Tell me Lisa, do you miss your father?" The girl asked as she dressed herself.

Lisa looked up in surprise but the girl didn't bother to look at her. She stuttered as she tried to fluff the pillow.

"Y-Yes, Milady." She said unsure.

"And do you have any other family?"

Why was this girl asking these questions? Was she maybe allowed to return home with her mother?

"I-I've got a s-sister an-and a br-brother, Milady."

The girl was busy doing her bindings and Lisa felt strange. This girl had no intention of letting her go, so why would she ask her about her family…Unless she was planning to kill them for her insolence.

When the realization hit her, Lisa fell on her knees in front of the girl, bowing and sniveling a bit. She couldn't let her family suffer because of her stupid mistake.

"Pl-Please Milady! If I have insulted you, punish me. My family is all I have." She sniveled and begged.

The girl above her snickered only, before a very cold finger pulled her chin up. Lisa looked up to see that the girl had crouched in front of her, a warm smile on her face, while her eyes only promised death.

"Don't bow for me like that Lisa. We are of the same age nonetheless. You have the right to look at me straight when you beg for mercy." She said, her voice filled with laughter.

Lisa shivered slightly and crawled up. She held her head low and clasped her hands together. Maybe she could take her family's punishment. They shouldn't suffer because of her.

"Please, Milady. They are my everything." She whispered as small tears started to roll down her face.

There was no reaction for some time and Lisa dared to look up. She saw how the girl looked curiously at her. Lisa saw how the girl raised her hand and she closed her eyes, awaiting her punishment. To her shocked surprise she felt how the hand wiped away the tears that had been dripping down her face. Lisa looked up and the girl smiled again.

"Family is an important thing." She said softly. "It would be a pity if you stayed separated. Don't worry, you've done nothing wrong."

Lisa felt how her composure fell and how a feeling of happiness filled her. This meant that her family would be spared and maybe she was sent back. Lisa remained silent as the girl finished her last bandage around her other arm and left the room.

"We need some guards and I believe that there are plenty of things that need to be repaired." The girl said.

Lisa sighed in relief. Maybe this girl wasn't that bad. Or, at least if she wouldn't betray her. Lisa didn't know why, but it was a heavy atmosphere that hang around that girl. It was a clear warning not to mess with her and Lisa wouldn't dare to either.

She watched how the girl was exiting the room when she remembered something.

"Milady?"

The girl stopped in the door opening, not bothering to turn around.

"Yes?"

Lisa gulped. Was it her place to wonder why the girl wouldn't take her bath now? But seeing that she was assigned to this room she had to know when to warm the bath.

"Won't you be taking your bath?" She asked carefully.

It was silent for a bit before the girl shook her head.

"Not now. I'll contact you when you can fill the tub, okay?"

Lisa nodded dumbly until she figured out that the girl couldn't see her. She bowed, before mentally kicking herself. If the girl couldn't see her nod than how could she see her bow?

"O-Of course, Milady." She said.

The girl snickered again. Lisa looked up to see that the girl was looking at her from the entrance.

"You can call me Will." She said before leaving.

Lisa looked stupefied at the door. This girl had just contradicted every rumor that was told about her and she even gave her permission to call her by her real name. It was a strange name as well. 'Will' was more of a boy's name than a girl's name and Lisa wondered if it was short for another name. She had learnt that every name had a meaning and she knew that the female version of 'Will' was an abbreviation of 'Wilma' or 'Wilhelmina' but she didn't know what it meant. She had to ask her mother for this.

Lisa looked through the room and noticed that the bed still wasn't made. She huffed in annoyance. How could she be so clumsily? She was just glad that Will hadn't punished her for it. A slight headache overcame Lisa. This girl, Will, was so confusing. She spoke in a way that scared you, yet she seemed to care about those who work for her. And then she wasn't even talking about the scary atmosphere that was surrounding her. It was as if every speck of light was overshadowed by a certain darkness and she was only faking that she cared. At least that was what Will beamed and it confounded Lisa. This girl was impossible to understand, so much was certain.

…

Who was she? Was she still the young, giggling girl who loved to gossip about fashion and boys? Was she the young Princess of a land ruled by her evil brother? Or was she just a follower of a rogue Guardian leader?

While these questions roamed through her head, Elyon's gaze fell on Will. Will seemed to be in an extreme good mood today. She had been smiling when she entered and had even greeted them. Everything seemed so wrong. Elyon didn't know who she was and the redhead was only making things more difficult for her.

At first, Elyon had been grateful for Will. After all, she was the only one who wanted to safe her from her brother while the other Guardians only wanted to deliver her with an apple in her mouth and a big bow on her head. But Elyon also felt as if she repaid that kindness by healing her back to good health.

But Will thought different. It was true that she never reminded Elyon of it, she probably thought that it was of none importance, but she never showed real gratefulness for healing her. Will just took her spot as leader, while it had been claimed by Cedric. At first, Elyon was surprised and angry with Will. She didn't deserve the leader's spot. Wasn't it proof enough that her friends and followers had betrayed her? How could she still be so confident and rude to reclaim her spot as leader?

Elyon was proud of the fact that Cedric had been defying her in the most subtle ways he could. At least he wouldn't follow Will like a mindless dog, like Caleb. Elyon had also reminded Miranda to where her true loyalties were supposed to be. Elyon had thought it was only a matter of time before Cedric would reclaim his spot as rightful leader of their group. But that was before their first day of training. After that day Cedric's fire, his drive to defy Will, had been doused and he was even more obedient to Will than Caleb was.

Elyon didn't know what to do. Should she try to defy Will's position? Would it be smart to try it if even Cedric's drive was destroyed? Was she really meant to rule if the Guardian leader could easily overshadow her?

Elyon decided to wait. It was better to see what Miranda and Caleb would do. If they would follow Will, then she would too. Because that would mean that Will had earned their loyalty and that way, she wouldn't have to take the leading position herself. There was something about the responsibilities that you had to bear that scared her off and secretly, she was glad that Will took the role.

"Today will be no training."

Elyon looked up, her eyes a bit misty due to the lack of blinking, and saw Will having a mischievous grin on her face. She glanced at Cedric, who had raised his eyebrow. So he didn't know why she cancelled it.

"And why is that?" Caleb asked, rather annoyed. "If you think you can simply put off training because you are tired than you should say so. It is not fair if you cancel it for everyone."

Will shook her head, the grin still on her face.

"My, my Caleb. If I didn't know better I would say that you are disappointed." She replied with a grin.

Elyon had to repress the urge to roll her eyes. Caleb's useless attempts of flirting were almost embarrassing while Will only played with him. She wondered when Caleb would notice it, if he would notice it.

Caleb grumbled something but it wasn't audible. Will ignored it before she continued.

"But it is for a good cause." She said.

Elyon had to snicker at that. If Will had used the word good a month or two ago she would have believed it, but now hearing the word made her sound almost hypocritical.

"And what cause might be more important than our revenge against Phobos and the Guardians?" Cedric questioned, also not being too happy with the idea.

Elyon's focus returned to Will, who only seemed to like the confusion in them. She kept smiling while she started to twirl her knife between her fingers.

"I've noticed the serious lack of men in the castle." She said. "It's not really nice to have only women work here. They will miss their families. That's why you and Miranda will go and fetch the men and children of the women who work in this castle, my dear serpent."

Elyon shivered at the nickname Will used. She could see how Caleb's look darkened and she felt herself getting a bit nauseous. She was actually wishing for the old Will. The one who was shy and wanted the best for everyone. The one who placed everyone's wellbeing for hers. The one Elyon could be jealous of without having the feeling that she should be scared.

Her gaze went to Cedric. He hadn't reacted to the nickname and only nodded. Miranda only gulped softly and nodded as well. Elyon wondered if Miranda was happy with following Will. Maybe she could ask her to join her and perhaps Will would step back. Then Elyon could let Miranda take the front while she would watch from the distance.

"Elyon can take some rest. I think you've deserved it after a month of hard training, don't you agree?"

Elyon blinked again, looking surprised at Will. Will only smirked and Elyon felt how her eyes were drawn to the knife between Will's fingers. Elyon had heard about Will's progress with sword fighting and the magic training and there was a small voice in her head that was almost ordering her to challenge Will for a stand-off. But she knew it was stupid. Will could always transform and Elyon doubted that she could defeat Will if she would transform. She wasn't that experienced in her magic like Will and it would be more because Will could outwit her than raw power that would be her end.

"S-Sure. But what will you do?" She questioned, wondering if Will had anything special in mind.

"I think Caleb and I will take a small tour through Heatherfield. I always wanted to see my own grave." Will said with a grin.

"Why does Caleb have to accompany you?"

It was out before she knew it but she did not waver as Will's gaze went to her. The girl would not scare her and she was not planning to bow for that glare. The grin returned quickly and she waved her hand, creating a portal much like Elyon could. Elyon saw how she looked at Caleb and Caleb only nodded, getting up and joining her.

"I think I can have some time with him alone, don't you agree?" She said with a laugh, before she and Caleb stepped through the portal.

The portal closed immediately and Elyon looked around. Cedric and Miranda had already left and she was alone in the dining room. The maids were probably having their own breakfast and they would come as soon as they were done. And for the first time since Elyon arrived here in this castle, she felt alone. Just like in Phobos's castle. Maybe when Miranda and Cedric returned with the men she wouldn't be alone. Maybe there was a cute guy who fancied her…If none of them fell for Will's sudden charms.

"Why are you doing it?"

Miranda watched cautiously as Cedric snarled a bit. He had suddenly changed his attitude towards Will after the first day of training. Miranda had been wondering if Will had magically hypnotized Cedric, but nothing seemed to point that way. On the contrary, it seemed as if he was doing so willingly.

"What do you mean, Miranda?"

His voice was a bit harsh as if he was regretting something. Miranda swallowed as she hurried to keep up with his pace. They would walk to the village where Cedric had kidnapped the girls and Cedric only seemed to quicken his pace. Miranda ran over the bridge as Cedric took longer strides.

"Well.. Since when do you listen to the redhead?" She asked curiously.

"Her name is Will and I think it would be wise for you to remember it." He said with a deep sigh.

Miranda only felt more confusion taking control of her but she was relieved when Cedric slowed down. She slowed down as well and walked next to him, looking up at him. Cedric had changed. With Phobos he was proud of the fact that he was strong. He was proud that he was intimidating but now with Will he seemed to have lost that pride. What did she do to him?

"What happened that day?"

Before she would have cursed her curiosity but she couldn't resist. She wanted to know why Cedric saw Will as a leader. Perhaps then she could finally settle her doubts too. She had been accepting Will as their leader before, but she wasn't sure if she made the right choice. Elyon had made her doubt by telling her that it was Cedric who came up with the plan of taking Will in. It seemed more to her that it was Will with the big plan.

"Nothing of your concern Miranda." Cedric replied a little harsh.

She expected that she hit a nerve. So Will did do something to crush his pride. Several images came up of scenarios in which Cedric would lose his pride…And one of them had something to do with castration…She shivered. She knew Will was getting colder, but she wouldn't be that cruel already? Though Miranda remembered the maid who had been whispering about Will. The maid had said Will was but a slut to Cedric at the same moment that she passed. Miranda never knew that a woman could scream in so many different ways, or that Will could be so good in torturing. She really didn't want to know what sort of hobbies the girl had before all of this. She had also listened in on a private conversation between Will and Cedric, a day before their training started. She had threatened him to twist and to pierce his balls in his sleep if he ever tried to rape another girl her age, or younger. Miranda guessed that that had been the reason for Cedric's sour mood that day, but Miranda couldn't understand why Will would do that. Was it some of her last Guardian instinct that called on her to protect the weak, or was it that she really only cared for revenge and crossing Cedric?

"But why do you suddenly obey her?"

Cedric finally showed some emotion, sighing in the progress as he pushed a branch out of the way.

"You are more annoying than Elyon, you know that?" He said, a smirk crossing his lips.

Miranda just grinned at him. She had always sort of liked him. He was always cruel near subordinates or other people, but when they were alone he was more gentle. He smiled more and he sometimes taught her a small trick. He told her different things about the history of Metamoor and even put her in bed when she had fallen asleep. True, she didn't know if he raped her, but he had been more of a father figure to her than what she could remember of her own father.

"Then answer my question." She replied stubbornly.

"Very well." Cedric said. "You see, there are things we will not understand in life. Will is one of these things. But I know this. If we follow her, we might get a chance of ruling ourselves."

Miranda saw the flicker in his eyes and looked confused at him. Ruling? Them? Will didn't seem like someone who would allow someone else to rule next to her, let alone four people extra. Cedric must have seen her confusion because he snickered, his hand ruffling through her hair.

"She was very interested in the history of Metamoor." He said with a grin. "And she told me that this land couldn't live with just one King or Queen. And that it would be her present to us for our loyalty."

Miranda's eyes widened in realization. Will was planning on giving them Metamoor? That only meant that she was planning on claiming more. But she would give them Metamoor. The whole world! She had never dreamed of such a thing and now Cedric said that they would get it if they followed her? Somewhere it sounded too good to be true. Even if Will had other plans, why would she give them this planet? Another realization hit her. When that time came, they would all be influenced by her darkness. They would all listen to her. So in a way, she would still rule, but only from the shadows.

"But wouldn't that give her even more power?" Miranda asked scared.

Cedric shrugged.

"Perhaps. Maybe she even dies because of it. I don't really care. The vow will keep us alive and safe from whatever she is planning and think like this. If she grows in power, so will we. It's more or less a win-win situation for us."

Miranda nodded. The way Cedric explained it made the offer a lot more likeable. Maybe it wasn't that bad to follow Will. At least in the end she would be above everyone else in this kingdom. No one would look down on her because she was a bastard and an orphan. Because she was a gifted shape shifter. She could see herself sitting in one of the four castles of the Great Knights of the olden days. It didn't matter if Will was still on the top of the food chain, she was safe from any attack, but the peasants were not.

…

He grumbled and scowled. His gaze went to her now grayish hair. She had glamoured them as an old couple and were stalking through the grey streets of Heatherfield. Sure the sun shone and the people looked happy, but Heatherfield was still the same grey and annoying city as ever. He never managed to know exactly where everything was. He normally followed one of the girls. He did recognize Irma's house, as well as Hay Lin's family restaurant, but they kept on walking.

Will had said she wanted to visit her grave, but Caleb had the ugly feeling that she was just enjoying her freedom. The girl did not complain about the training, but he was sure that she was enjoying herself. He didn't get it either. She normally pushed herself so hard during training and seemed really devoted and now she suddenly called off the training for the whole day? What was she thinking? Could she really afford a day off? True, he was still not that happy with the whole vengeance gig she had running, he felt that he couldn't leave her alone. He was the only one she had left and if he betrayed her all hope for Will would be lost.

They rounded a corner and Caleb's memory started to kick in again.

"Isn't this the way to your house?" He asked curiously.

He saw her smirk, though he had to admit her real face was more beautiful than the one she used now. She walked a bit faster and grinned.

"I'm glad to see that your memory still works." She remarked.

"Why are we going there? I thought you wanted to see your grave?" He asked a bit sourly.

She turned to him and he could still see her dark chocolate colored eyes. They swam with mischievous thoughts and Caleb had the feeling that this was an elaborate plan but the rest of her face feigned innocence. She even pouted a bit and he sighed. He wasn't going to get a truthful answer.

"I just want to see it one last time. You know, for memories." She said to him.

He only sighed again, not even bothering to raise his eyebrow. He could tell she was lying, just because she said that she wanted to see her house for memories. In the past month Will only snarled when something of the past was reminded, so it was highly doubtable that she wanted to remember her past here. He remained silent as he followed her, to the tall building near the outskirts of the town. The elevator went up and gave him as usual a strange feeling in his stomach and another feeling somewhere else when it stopped. The doors opened quietly and he resumed following Will. He had always entered her house through the room so he had no idea how to find his way in this maze of hallways.

They stopped in front of a door. The number which should tell you who lived here was almost entirely gone, the number '7' hanging next to the door and the numbers '1' and '4' laying on the ground next to the door. He raised his eyebrow as he heard Will snicker.

"So she still hasn't fixed it."

He didn't bother to ask and watched how she pulled out her keychain. He noticed that the frog, which once dangled next to a collection of keys, had disappeared. Now it was just an ordinary set of keys, of which one was being forced into the door's keyhole. He then wondered something. What if Susan was still at home? Wouldn't she think it was strange if an old couple suddenly entered her house?

"Don't worry. Mom is working. It's a Thursday after all." Will said with a grin, as if she had been reading his mind.

Caleb raised an eyebrow. True, Will 'died' a bit of a month ago, but how could Susan already be done with the mourning? He shook his head as he reminded himself that she wouldn't have stopped mourning. Yes, Susan was a strong woman, something Will reflected, but she truly loved her daughter. Even when the two were alienating from each other he knew that Susan still cared for Will and he was sure that she would have kept Will's stuff.

The key clicked and the door swung open. Caleb immediately recognized the chamber but he wasn't the only one who recognized something.

#_Miss Will!#_

_#I told you she wasn't dead! She just couldn't be!#_

_#It's nice to see you again, Ma'am.#_

_#Wanna watch your favorite cartoon? It's on on channel five.#_

Caleb glanced at Will, who only grinned at him. She was probably reading his confusion because she snickered and demanded for silence with just one swish of her wrist. Her eyes sparkled with mirth and he could feel how a grin was growing on his own face.

"Cedric isn't that bad as a teacher. My powers are growing and I can allow you to hear them if I wish to. It was fun to test it on my maid. Poor girl. She must have jumped a new world record." She said with a foul grin, only making Caleb snicker.

He wasn't that happy that she had used a human test subject but it was innocent and he remembered her complaining about her parental phone, who seemed to take it as it's task to fulfill the part of Will's father. It must have been funny to see the maid jump like that.

He let his gaze wander through the room, faintly catching Will's mocking "Home, sweet home." The room looked the same as it did the last time he was here, but something seemed off. He slowly walked to the low table in front of the couch. Was he wrong or was something missing? He was sure that there had been a picture. A picture of Will and her mother. He looked around and walked to the kitchen counter. There used to be a pile of papers, Will's cell phone and a couple of pictures of Will when she was younger on that counter. Now the phone was missing and the pictures had been changed to that of Susan and a man Caleb seemed to faintly recall as the guy the Guardians once zapped, thinking he was Cedric.

Caleb felt his anger rise. How could Will's mother so easily abandon her own daughter? How could she be so cruel? He couldn't understand it either. He thought mother's cared deeply for their children, not being completely capable of letting them go. Look at Cassidy's mother. She always kept Cassidy's memory alive. Look at his own! She had wanted him to join her for crying out loud. But Will's mother just abandoned Will as a piece of thrash. Did Will really mean that little to Susan? Caleb silently cursed himself. Wasn't he the one who had urged Will to get closer to her mother? How could he have put her through such torture if it was evident that Will's mother didn't want Will?

He walked unconsciously to Will's room. Surely she wouldn't have discarded Will's valuables? There had to be some good in the older woman, right? He opened the door and to his horror the room was empty, except for some stuff that never even belonged to Will. He felt how his breathing started to quicken and his blood started to pulse. Will was neglected, he was sure of it.

"Oh, never knew that this room was that big."

He looked incredulously at Will, who only looked through her old room with blank eyes. He couldn't read any emotion in them and he wondered if she even felt an emotion. She even looked like she wasn't surprised. Caleb only felt his anger rise. So Will knew her mother didn't care for her and still she went home? If he'd known that, he would have told Susan what he thought of her and he would have taken Will to his place in Metamoor. There she wouldn't be hurt by her mother or by anyone else for that matter. He only cursed himself for noticing it too late.

"Come, I want you to hear something."

Her voice had returned to the usual coldness that had been laced in it since she remembered the betrayal. He ignored the slight shiver that ran over his spine and followed her to the kitchen, where she looked fairly bored at the refrigerator.

"Tell him James." She ordered.

Caleb only raised his eyebrow when the refrigerator started to clear his 'throat' or when it started with a posh English accent. He never knew that something like this would grow old so quickly.

_#Well, it was on the day of Miss Will's funeral. Her friends came and told Miss Susan that Miss Will had died. Miss Susan seemed so devastated back then.#_

Caleb had to refrain himself from snarling. Sure she would have acted like that. Just to keep the appearance high that she was a caring mother. He wished he was there that day.

_#She first wanted to see Miss Will's body, but she quickly changed her mind when the four young women went into detail too horrific to recount.#_ James continued. _#She immediately arranged a funeral. After three hours she returned with a dazed look on her face. I suspect it was from the shock. But then she started packing all of Miss Will's belongings in big boxes and threw them on the streets. She even sold George and Martha!#_

The last part was said with a certain disdain and Caleb couldn't help but feel the same. What Susan had done was terrible and unforgiveable. He couldn't understand why Will didn't want to take revenge on her mother as well. He gave her a questioning look, wondering who this Martha and George were. She only sighed, a grin spreading on her face.

"He means my computer and printer. The two never knew when to shut up." She said with a hint of a laugh.

_#Miss Will, excuse me for my insolence, but are you planning to return?#_ The fridge asked.

Will waved at him and sighed.

"Sorry James, but I think it's better for me to find my luck elsewhere." She said, almost sounding like she was regretting it.

_#We shall miss you, Ma'am!#_ The mixer said.

_#We'll always carry your memory in our chips.# _The television piped up.

Will smiled at them, making Caleb wonder if it was a real one or not, and she gestured him to follow. He nodded and looked at the machinery that was saying their goodbyes. They at least seemed to care for her, but they were just machines. They had been brought alive because of Will so it was only natural that they showed concern and respect to her. He couldn't just leave her to machines. They couldn't protect her.

They were walking once again through the streets of Heatherfield and Caleb was still mulling things over. Susan should never have been allowed to have kids. Will deserved better than that. Maybe he should ask her why she wouldn't take revenge on her mother.

"I can't believe your mother abandoned you like that. I'm sorry." He said, his voice filled with anger and sorrow.

Will only grinned and waved his concern away.

"She didn't do it on free will." She said mysteriously.

Caleb raised his eyebrow. How could Will think like this? The refrigerator had been painfully clear. How could she be so sure that Susan hadn't deliberately abandoned her?

"How can you say that?" He asked her incredulously. "The refrigerator was clear, wasn't he?"

Her eyes sparkled with mystery and her smile resembled the one he'd seen in one of Hay Lin's magazines, the one of the Mona Lisa. What was she thinking?

"Exactly." She said. "And do you remember what he said? He said that my mom suddenly changed her mind over seeing my body when the Guardians went into detail. If there is something you can't do then it would be changing my mother's mind when it concerns me. Also James said that my mother had a dazed look on her face when she returned. Now tell me how it is possible to get a dazed look while you haven't seen anything shocking? It's either that she had a near death experience or someone toyed with her mind. And who do we know who can suggest things?"

Caleb's eyes widened. Was Will implying what he thought she was?

"Do you mean…?"

He swallowed. He refused to believe it. Yes, they had betrayed her but he thought it was just because they were afraid of Cornelia. They wouldn't..She wouldn't change Susan's mind like that, would she?

"Irma?"

His breath stopped when he saw Will nod. Of course it had to be Irma. None of the others had those powers and Caleb felt the knot, that had been around when he and Will started their training, grow. His anger was fueling him. Had it been Cornelia who ordered Irma to do so or had Irma done that on her own? He gritted his teeth and clenched his hands. She would pay, even if he didn't know how. He would make sure that he would help Will in getting her revenge. With every step the feeling of that Will's vengeance was only justice increased.

He felt how cold fingers slipped through his and he looked at Will. She only grinned at him and he couldn't help but feel scared. There was something unsettling in her grin, as if she knew more than him.

"Come on. Let's sit down in the park for a minute. It will be our last time." She said almost romantically.

Almost. If her voice had been warmer or if he knew she would feel any love towards him it would have been romantic. Not that he cared. He didn't care if Will loved him. As long as she allowed him to protect her.

They strolled through the park and sat down on one of the two benches near the pond. It was silent except for the background noises of the cars racing through the streets and the laughs of children in the park. Caleb found himself relaxing for the first time since this whole circus started. He smiled truly at the pond and let his eyes sweep over the different kinds of people that entered or left the park. A jogger with music in her ears, a real old couple feeding the doves and a group of teenagers Will's age that seemed awfully familiar. He could see Will's expression harden when said group of teenagers took the bench next to theirs, not much talking. He noticed how Will's hand clenched and he placed his on hers, trying to keep their cover and to keep her calm.

He then tried to listen in on the conversation between Matt, Irma, Taranee and Hay Lin, hoping they wouldn't notice him, or Will, listening in on them.

"Where are Eric and Nigel?" Irma asked relaxed.

Taranee and Hay Lin sighed. Both weren't looking so happy, though Caleb couldn't imagine why.

"We told them about the whole Guardian thing." Taranee said carefully.

"And they said they needed time." Hay Lin finished with a sad look.

Irma just grinned at them and patted Hay Lin on her shoulder.

"Cheer up! Those two can't live without you! You are their perfect girls! And if they doubt too long, just give me a call." She said with a wink.

Taranee and Hay Lin grinned at that and Caleb couldn't believe his ears. Was Irma suggesting to brainwash Eric and Nigel as well?

"Talking about girls, why is Corny not here?" Matt asked with a grin.

Caleb noticed how Matt's arm laid on Irma's waist, just above her butt and he felt his anger rise again. This jackass betrayed Will as well?

Irma placed her finger on her chin, looking as if she was thinking.

"Let me think. Who is the one Corny keeps running off to when we can't find her?" She questioned with a grin.

Taranee shuddered. Perhaps she was still normal and maybe she was regretting attacking Will.

"I still can't believe that she dates Phobos. I mean, those two have nothing in common!" She said with a slight disgust.

Irma laughed at that, maybe a bit harshly.

"Nothing in common?" She said. "Please. Both are stuck up. Both are arrogant. Both have blonde hair, be it in different shades. Both have an annoying sibling. Both think that they are king or queen of the world…"

"Which is true in Phobos's case." Hay Lin piped up with a grin.

Caleb felt his own fist clench, but Will didn't react to it when his fingers duck into her hand. How could Hay Lin say that? She knew how Phobos was. Phobos was not worthy to rule and Caleb even doubted that Elyon was. He remained silent, though it was getting harder with every word those airheads said.

"Yes, yes…" Irma said, waving Hay Lin's comment away. "Did I forget something? Oh yes! Corny is our flower Guardian and Phobos likes deflowering…I mean flowers. You have to admit he has a beautiful garden."

Taranee had choked on the shake she was carrying and Hay Lin and Matt stifled a laugh. Even Caleb had to admit it was a clever remark. He coughed a bit to hide his laugh and from the corner of his eye he even saw Will smiling. Caleb wondered if Cornelia would yell or punish Irma.

"Be careful Irma or else Cornelia might come and whip you into shape." Hay Lin said with a grin.

Caleb wasn't sure if he thought it was funny. Hay Lin said it as if she wasn't meaning it. Irma shrugged and cuddled to Matt.

"You make her sound like the boogeyman. She won't attack us and be honest. I did my share of torturing as well." She said with a malicious grin.

"Yeah. I never thought Will could scream like that." Taranee said with a grin.

Caleb felt how his anger started to pulse once more and He felt how Will's hand grabbed his. She was now the one keeping him calm and she was doing a better job at it than him. He could see her breathing calmly and he could see the darkness, which had been ruling her eyes for weeks, return.

"I wish I could have been there. She was really an annoying pest."

Caleb's impulse was to jump up and tackle the lanky boy with the bad goatee whose hand was nearing Irma's butt. How dare he say that about Will while Caleb had left her in his hands. He even trusted him after the whole Shagon affair! The guy just grinned when Irma pecked him on the cheek and Caleb felt his heart throbbing harder. He had to get away before he would do something stupid. He tried to push himself up but Will kept him in his place.

"You have to admit that it had something, cheating behind Will's back." Irma said. "It made me feel special."

Matt kissed her back, this time on the mouth and Caleb didn't bother to control himself. He almost managed to jump up but he felt a small jolt travel up his arm. He looked at Will who gave him a warning glare. Why was she torturing herself like this? She didn't need to hear this. She deserved better. He would make sure that she wouldn't be hurt like this ever again.

He felt something entering him from where Will was touching him. He wondered if it would calm him down. He couldn't afford to lose his cool and jump Matt, or any of those betrayers. He couldn't afford to bring Will in danger. He felt how the strange cold was clawing through his body. It felt strangely nice while it was hurting him as well. What was entering his body?

Will grabbed his hand and pulled him up, but he couldn't get his mind of the feeling that was fueling him. It was calming him down as well as giving him the satisfying images of snapping the necks of the Guardians or ripping Matt's balls off… It surprised him that he wasn't surprised by his thoughts. Before he would have been disgusted by himself, but now he only found justice in doing so. They destroyed Will's relationship with her mother. Matt dared to cheat on her with one of her so-called friends. And those friends betrayed her on their own free will. They didn't deserve to live and he only let them because it was Will's place to take revenge, not him. Though he would not mind helping her in every way he could.

She smiled. She would have laughed loudly if it wouldn't attract unwanted attention. Caleb was falling and he wasn't even noticing it. He was probably thinking that it was justice, which it was. She could see how her darkness was rapidly conquering his light and she had to stop herself from skipping. This was just too easy. She never thought her 'friends' would do her such a favor. Maybe she would do them a favor as well. Perhaps a temporary chance of saving themselves?

She shook those thoughts of as she took Caleb's hand and lead him towards the graveyard of Heatherfield. She expected that her grave would be there and she just wanted to see it. Just to laugh at the foul irony. How many times did she hear the threat of villains: "You don't want to be late for your own funeral?" Well, she was too late, but that didn't mean that she couldn't laugh at her grave. And it was more than just a rock on top of an empty coffin. It also held a meaning. They did bury her alright. The Will who was shy and wanted friends. The Will who was naïve enough to believe that she could safe worlds by fighting the bad guys. The Will who had been afraid of the dark.

They entered the graveyard and asked the keeper for directions. They walked slowly when they noticed a figure standing for what should be her grave. Will felt a feeling of queasiness engulf her when she recognized the person. It wasn't possible. What was he doing her? The dark skin color and dreadlocks were a dead give-away. What was Angelo Vanders doing here? He should have left her, like the others had left her.

She felt Caleb's hand tighten around hers and both stopped in front of another grave, listening in on Angelo.

Angelo looked sadly at the grave.

'Here lays Wilhelmina Vandom. 19-01-1995 to 19-12-2011.'

He still felt a pang of pain coursing through him as he looked at the grave. Will had been just a year younger than him and she was always so full of life. She had been telling him happily how her life had changed for the better in Heatherfield and he just couldn't believe she was gone.

"Hey Will. How's it going?"

His throat felt dry. He was supposed to ask her that face to face, not looking at her tombstone.

"I know it's been a while since your funeral, but it just hurt too much to come back here." He said, his voice broken by sadness. "I wish this never happened. You had so much to live for. Senior prom. Graduating. Going to college. Trying out for the Olympics. All of your dreams!"

He stopped then. He just felt that crying was nearer than smiling but he pushed on. He couldn't leave like this. He owed Will that.

"I wish I could have seen you one more time, but aunt Susan wanted a closed casket."

His hand went to the bag he had taken with him. He had bought it for her about two months ago, intending to give it to her straight away. He had never thought that he had to deliver it like this. He pulled out a little crystal frog, sitting on a beautifully carved wooden lily pad.

"I had this made for you two months ago." He said with a wry smile.

He crouched and placed the frog near her tombstone, together with some red roses that resembled her hair. He never thought he had to do something like this. He had hoped to grow old together, with each other or with another soul mate. To see her grave like this was hurting him more than anything he could imagine.

"Happy birthday Will. I hope you like your present." He said as he finally allowed tears to run down his cheeks.

He sat there, sobbing slightly, before he finally managed to pull himself together. He got up and wiped his tears away, looking one last time at the tombstone.

'I'll never forget you, Will Vandom.' He thought sadly before turning his back to the grave.

He began to walk away from the grave when his eye fell on an elderly couple. The woman and man were looking at him and he gave them a sad smile. He expected that they were visiting a dead beloved as well. The elderly couple walked at him and he stopped. He could use some distraction now.

He didn't like it. He didn't like it one bit. He knew this guy. Will had introduced him months ago. Angelo Vanders, her first crush and best friend from Fadden Hills.

Caleb clenched his fists as Will pulled him towards Angelo. He didn't want to know why the jackass was at Will's grave. Maybe he never forgot his feelings for Will. That didn't matter anyway. Caleb was not planning on letting someone hurt Will, like her friends had done, ever again.

He couldn't help but feel a smirk growing when he saw Angelo's sad face. He really seemed to miss Will and he would make sure that he would never have to see her again.

"It's sad to lose someone like this." He said, his voice sounding heavy.

He could feel Will next to him stiffen a bit but his eyes didn't leave Angelo. Angelo smiled sadly at him, probably thinking that Caleb was just being friendly, and shook his head. He placed his hand on his chest and started talking.

"She will always live on, here in my heart." He said. "And I know the good Lord will watch over her."

Caleb suppressed the urge to roll his eyes while Will snickered next to him. He doubted that a God, even if it was Angelo's God, would be watching over Will from now on. They all left her when the Guardians betrayed Will. Will only had him and Angelo would not interfere. He grinned at Angelo while he looked confused at Will.

"That's not what I meant, Angelo Vanders." He said, his smirk only growing when Angelo's confused gaze went to him.

Caleb felt the familiar rush of magic and from the corner of his eye he could see how Will deglamoured. He guessed that he had deglamoured as well and he was still looking at Angelo. Angelo staggered backwards, a look of hurt, confusion and shock on his face. He pointed almost dumbly at Will and his mouth fell open. He even turned his head to look at the grave before looking back at Will.

Caleb smiled at Will when he saw something worrisome. He thought he saw a flicker of hope in Will's eyes. A thought that perhaps not everyone deserted her. That was not true. Everyone left her and Angelo was just playing in on those feelings. Caleb would not allow Angelo to take Will back. He would not allow Will to feel pain again. Not anymore.

"W-Will? You're alive?"

Angelo spoke those words with such a disbelieve that Caleb was almost sure he thought he was seeing ghosts. He also noticed that Angelo seemed to have completely forgotten about him as his eyes studied Will's body. The nerve of that guy. Darker thoughts started to swarm his mind and Caleb had to admit that he was liking them.

He saw how Will shook her head. Was she over her shock? Was she hoping he would go with her? Was she hoping that he, Angelo, would pull her back? That was his job and not this dreadlock playmate. One thing was sure, Angelo was a threat. One that needed to disappear…

"No. The Will you knew died that day." Will said, a small smirk playing on her lips.

Angelo's eyes widened even more.

"But…How?"

Caleb felt a snarl creep on his face. This guy was way too nosy and he really should stop studying Will's body like that.

"That doesn't concern you." He snarled.

He saw how Angelo's eyes flashed at him and Caleb noticed how the small flicker of false and unrighteous hope died in Will's eyes. He hoped Will wasn't too mad at him. He was only protecting her from yet another disappointment. He saw a smirk forming on her full red lips and felt his sneer turn into a smirk. So she didn't mind. She was even inviting him to do more.

His smirk stayed, even when Angelo desperately grabbed Will's hand.

"Please Will. I don't know what happened but we can fix this!" He pleaded. "Just like we always do!"

Caleb thought Angelo had done enough. He was only trying to pull Will away from him. To take his job as his own. His hand slit to the knife on his belt which he had been carrying since he took his entrance in the castle. Angelo was too big a threat to be allowed to live. He couldn't risk him running to the Guardians, telling them that Will was still alive. He couldn't risk Will's safety.

She smiled at Angelo. How dense could a guy be? She had to admit that he had a nasty effect on her. He was actually making her wonder if it was a good thing to turn evil. If it was a good idea to continue with her revenge. From the corner of her eye she saw how Caleb was grabbing for his knife. How primitive, but it was the effect she had hoped to create. She only wished that Angelo could see her side. She had forgotten about him. He truly was the only one who hadn't betrayed her. But he was a danger and she couldn't use that, not now. Not ever.

She pulled her hand back, allowing herself to laugh coldly. She could practically see the shivers on Angelo's spine. In his eyes swam worry and fear, just what she wanted.

"I'm fixing things already." She said, her voice again as cold as it was supposed to be.

From the corner of her eye she could see Caleb's annoyed face. His eyes actually brunt with hatred and she could feel how easily she was influencing him, controlling him. She felt how her energy flowing through his arm and the hand that held the knife. She could almost feel how his fingers grasped the hilt of the knife tighter.

"But you are in the way." He said coldly.

Will could see the confusion on Angelo's face and somewhere, deeply hidden, she could feel a small jab of pain when she saw how Caleb lunged his knife in Angelo's chest. Angelo's eyes swept to her face and Will smiled almost sadly at him.

"Goodbye, Angelo." She said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

She could see it in his eyes. She even thought she felt something slip away. His soul had left and all that was left was the bleeding corpse of Angelo Vanders, of which Caleb pulled his knife out. He wiped it clean on Angelo's jacket and snarled at the body.

"Was that really necessary?" She snarled, feeling still a little annoyed. "I could have used him."

Caleb glared darkly at her, something she did like to see. He then turned his head away and walked to her grave.

"He came too close." She heard him mutter.

A smirk crossed her face as she walked up to him. His feelings were a mess and thanks to them, she controlled him.

"You're jealous, aren't you?" She whispered, mirth hidden in the question.

He didn't look at her but she knew she was right. Men and their pathetic feelings. He was almost worse than Elyon and her rampaging hormones. But it didn't matter. She had what she came for.

Her eyes fell on the little frog next to her grave. She crouched and picked it up. She smiled at it, while she was sure that Caleb was almost glaring at it.

"He was nice, wasn't he?" She said, her finger tracing the frog.

"Why do you want that?"

His question was valid and full of annoyance. Angelo was even annoying him in death. Her fingers clasped around the frog and lily pad. It was the only present she got and she thought it was a nice keepsake. After all, it was the last thing Angelo ever touched.

"I think it fits well in my empty room. But I'm done here. Let's go home."

She saw Caleb's glare and grinned while making the portal. If this was such a success than she was really wondering if her other plans worked as well.

…

Okay, she was bored. After walking through the castle for half an hour and reading for another half an hour in the library, she had grown bored. There was no one, except for the maids and they were submissive towards her. But she wanted some gossip. Elyon decided to do her favorite past-time activity. Glamouring herself as a maid and hear the gossip of the castle. She had done it at Phobos's castle, but the maids weren't so talkative as the ones working in their castle. She enjoyed the gossips about a supposed ghost. She knew it was Will but she loved the fantasy and imagination that gave Will powers which were too stupid for words.

She glamoured herself and cautiously walked through the hallways. The first time she did it, she was busted by the head maid Agnes had found her and had immediately shooed her to the kitchens. Never had Elyon been so happy to know how to clean potatoes or else she would have been in trouble. She rounded a corner and suddenly bumped into a pile of linen, with behind that a girl around her age. She had fair brown hair and brown eyes. Her face was pretty and Elyon knew that there were men who would turn their heads for this girl. The girl started to stutter in surprise and Elyon smiled. She crouched with the girl and helped her picking up the linen.

"I'm sorry I bumped into you." She said.

The girl shook her head as Elyon took the half of the pile. Both started to walk in the direction Elyon just left.

"No, I'm sorry. Agnes warned me but I didn't listen." She said.

Elyon noticed the curious look on the girl's face. Elyon could feel the question coming but stayed silent.

"Uhm, I've never seen you. What's your name?"

Elyon grinned friendly at the girl.

"My name is El…Elle. I just arrived at the castle." She lied.

There was no need to tell the girl what her real name was. She couldn't risk it that any of the others knew that she associated with the maids. Elyon shifted the load in her arms and followed the girl around the corner.

"What's your name anyway?" She asked curiously.

"I'm Lisa." The girl said.

"Oh." Elyon said, having the weird feeling she had heard the name before.

Something about Cedric being denied to rape the girl. Elyon knew that Cedric raped girls younger than him and she was rather glad he didn't try it with her, though a small part of her wished he would do it to her. She noticed how Lisa was looking around her, as if she was checking if they were alone or not. She then bent to Elyon in a conspiring manner.

"Do you know of the ghost?" She asked in a hushed voice.

Elyon repressed a smile. So this girl had grown afraid of Will as well? True, Will had become colder and maybe a bit crueler over the month, but she wasn't scary. She nodded and saw how the girl smiled.

"I've met her." She said in a satisfied tone.

Elyon knew that she was expecting a surprised reaction so she gasped. It seemed as if this girl was pretty proud of the fact and Elyon wanted to know why. What was so great in meeting Will?

"No way." She gasped.

Lisa nodded vigorously. She really wanted to tell her and Elyon didn't mind. She really missed the gossip and she really needed a new past-time.

"Way." Lisa said with a grin. "And she is not like the things the others are saying about her. Okay, her voice is cold and you can just feel that it's getting colder with every sentence, but she isn't cruel or whatever. She asked me about my family and I've heard that she'd sent out Lady Miranda and Lord Cedric to fetch not only mine, but the other families as well. And…"

Elyon felt that something important was coming up. She leaned closer in and nearly let the linen fall. They had been standing in front of a door for a couple of minutes now but Elyon could wait. She wanted to hear this.

"She was the one who made sure that Lord Cedric couldn't rape me." Lisa said with, her voice filled with respect for Will and Will alone. "She saved me."

Elyon could just feel the amount of respect Lisa seemed to have for Will. Elyon wondered how Will could so easily gain respect, while Elyon never managed to gain any respect except when her title was named. Maybe Will was more suited to lead. She could always use a good example and Will seemed to be just that. And seeing that Cedric was following her, Elyon did not see any harm in doing the same. Perhaps she would get more benefits than trying it on her own.

"Really?" Elyon said impressed.

Lisa nodded, a smile gracing her face.

"I'm glad that Agnes made me the new maid of Miss Will. Perhaps She wouldn't mind to talk to me more often." She said with a grin.

"Are you lonely?" Elyon asked slyly.

She recognized the hope in this girl. She had been the same the first time when she arrived at Phobos's castle. She had just wanted some company and Miranda was the one to fulfill that spot. And it seemed that Lisa was hoping that Will would want to fulfill that spot. At this Elyon felt her heart tighten. There was a big chance that that wasn't happening. Will was already getting colder and she was even denying Caleb's affections. Will didn't seek any bonds, she only wanted to destroy them. Elyon stayed silent as Lisa kept on talking when suddenly a voice rang through the hallway.

"Lisa! I hope you've stashed those linen! Lady Miranda and Lord Cedric have returned with new people and I need you here as well!" The voice of the head maid Agnes echoed.

Lisa nearly let the linen fall and Elyon giggled a bit. This girl was a bit jumpy but otherwise, she seemed to be okay. She only thought it was sad that this girl had to work here instead of doing what she could have wanted. She saw her fidget and rolled her eyes. If she went away, Elyon could drop the glamour.

"Give me your linen. I'll put them away." She said, getting a relieved sigh from Lisa.

"Thanks! You're a lifesaver!"

Elyon smiled wryly. If this girl only knew.

"Sure." She said when she took Lisa's load. "Now get going! I don't think that Agnes has a lot of patience."

Lisa laughed at that and nodded. Elyon watched her running around the corner before she sighed. She nodded at the door, making it swing open and with a very impractical swish of her hand she made the linen fly into the storage room. She closed the door and undid her glamour. Perhaps there were some cute guys between those who Miranda and Cedric had taken with them.

…

He had once again fulfilled her wishes. The families had been reunited in their castle. He had to admit that he was not too happy with it, but they needed guards and gardeners. And a smith wouldn't be too bad either. He just wished that Will had wanted men from other villages. Now his nightly exploits would be even more difficult, especially if he had to kill men in this castle. It didn't matter. He still could go to other villages. Will wouldn't care and he wouldn't care if she did. She hadn't placed a rule about that, so he wasn't breaking any.

He silently snarled when he noticed how much of a lapdog he'd become. All because of her. She was good, something he would humbly admit. She was perhaps the first one who had ever made him feel like this. Feel this humble.

Elyon appeared from one of the hallways and Cedric knew she was looking for a possible good looking guy. He rolled his eyes. The girl was just too much concerned about her social life and Cedric wished that Will would influence her faster. Her goody-two-shoes attitude was becoming increasingly annoying and he wasn't sure for how long he would manage not to snap at her.

A portal opened and Will and Caleb stepped out of it. Will turned around and closed it, but Cedric had only eyes for Caleb. His eyes were way darker than when he left and Cedric was sure that he saw the sheath of Caleb's knife was a bit wet at the point. Cedric wondered what exactly Will had done to him, but he could feel her tainting darkness inside of Caleb. Now the only ones who needed a small peak of her darkness were Miranda and Elyon and Cedric knew it wouldn't be long.

Caleb didn't bother to look around and walked away, muttering something about going to his chambers. It was Will who stayed. Her eyes first went over the men and children that walked past her before her eyes settled on Miranda.

"Miranda, I have a job for you."

_**[A/N] End of chapter. Darkness is fun, isn't it? First I wanted Susan to be a bitch, but it turns out that I just can't, so Irma was blamed. Also, I do like my maid. She's cute isn't she? I thought you people ought to know how Will is in the castle and I thought this was rather nice. Also I fairly like my Caleb. Darker he is far more cuter :D  
>Ah yes, Angelo. Well, many dedicated readers of W.I.T.C.H. must know Lexvan and his stories. Angelo is his OC, but for those who don't know him a short biography: <strong>_

_**Angelo Vanders, grandson of Kadma and Joe (OC as well). Born in Fadden Hills and best friend of Will. Was her first boyfriend as well. Parents died when he was young and he's an African-American. for further information you ought to read a story of Lexvan. You will get like it (unless you're looking for something as dark as this..Cause then you've got no luck) So Lexvan, thanks for letting me murder Angelo!**_

_**Don't forget to review!**_


	8. Chapter 7 Mission

**Chapter 7 Mission**

Two weeks. Two weeks had she been sitting outside the bustling village of Meridian through wind and rain. Well..bustling village? It was more like a ghost town, the people only coming out when the need for food was great. It was because Phobos had sent more guards out, in one of his vain attempts to find his little sister. Miranda chuckled slightly as she saw yet another group of guards walk past her. They wouldn't recognize her with the glamour spell she had learnt from Cedric and this way she could keep an eye out for her objective.

She had to admit that the guards were complicating her mission. Will had ordered her to find the Passling she used to hang out with. The one that had been such a nuisance before. Miranda had to follow it to its home, where its mother was living as well, and bind it in her webbings. The mother had to be killed and eaten. Well, Will never said eaten but Miranda had found that Passling meat was very delicious when she was in her spider form. The fact that she lacked a nose in that form greatly contributed. At least she didn't smell the awful stench the creature adored to have and well…A Passling tasted like chicken.

She hid herself once again in the shadow of a closed shop when a small group of men passed. They were in a heavy discussion and Miranda had the feeling that she wasn't going to be lucky today. Right when she turned around, planning on returning to her hideout, she heard a nasal voice screeching out. A voice she recognized.

A smile grew on her face and she started walking in the direction of the voice.

"Treasures! Treasures for trade!"

Miranda grinned when she stopped in another shadow of a house. The Passling Blunk was standing in the middle of the streets, on top of a barrel, and it was shouting about the things it had 'collected' from Earth. Miranda had no clue what the objects were that lay on the barrel, or the thing it was holding, but she knew it was mostly junk. It was very rare for a Passling to have anything useful.

It held something up which looked like a fork and a spoon crossed together, but with the teeth crooked. Miranda raised her eyebrow as she listened to the Passling's blabbering, staying out of the wind to avoid its keen nose.

"Backscratcher!" The Passling yelled enthusiastically.

It scratched its back with the thing and Miranda was sure she could see clubbers of dirt and other things fall off of it. A slight nausea came up but she quickly shook it away. She had to do this if she wanted to please Cedric. He wanted to please Will and Miranda felt the slight urge to hear a praise from Will as well. But she was doing it for Cedric as a way of showing him how well she could use the things he taught her.

The Passling slumped on its barrel. She heard him mutter about bad market and she watched how he started to pack his things. Now she just hoped that the troll would visit its mother instead of running back to Earth.

She focused on the magic that was flowing through her veins. Transforming into her spider form would be the easiest thing to do, but the risk of being spotted and recognized was too big. Instead she formed the image of a Threbian Larkbird inside of her head and willed herself to change into said animal. When she first tried it Elyon had told her it reminded her of a bat crossed with an eagle and a cat. Miranda knew what a cat and a bat were, but she was clueless about the eagle. And she didn't care either. The main fact was that she managed, yet again, to transform into the bird form and she took off, hoping to catch the Passling who had buggered off while she was transforming and lost in thoughts. Luck seemed to be on her side as she noticed the stink monkey not far from the town. He was walking and Miranda prepared herself for a long flight, seeing the stupid troll was walking slow and it seemed to be enjoying its freedom. She stared into the distance and her eyes spotted something that looked like a disheveled shack. So the turd was not returning to Earth, but to mama. Miranda hid her smirk. This had to be her lucky day.

**…**

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

It was a sound that kept repeating itself. A sound which was more annoying than a ticking clock. The sound of drops of water which slowly fell from the leaves of the trees around her. How long had she been sitting here again? How long had she let her mind wander from her actual purpose?

She shifted her position under a large tree. This was the tenth day in a row that she was sitting here. She even went out when it rained, hoping to sense maybe a speck of energy. Cedric told her he couldn't teach her more if she couldn't understand the true potential of her powers.

'Quintessence' he said 'is the energy that flows through everything. The wind's movement creates the energy, making it easy for those who can sense this energy, to control it. The earth's energy is constant. The energy flows through the plants and with that, you should be able to control them. Fire is a constant flow of energy, just in a different, more primitive form. And the movement in the water creates small jolts of energy that ensures that it can shift and bend, without breaking. Energy is in everything and only if you can sense it all, I shall continue your training, my little flash.'

It had irked her. He was obviously liking it that he had a certain control over her, but it wouldn't be long. She was sure of it. She breathed slowly and tried to block the noise of the drops of water. Instead a more unpleasant sound started to echo throughout the gardens. It was the insufferable and irritating sound of laughing children. It had been her who had ordered to take the whole family to the castle, including the small army of kids. If they weren't busy working in the castle, they were 'playing' around. The reason why Will loathed the little creatures was that they were friends with one another. That they were showing her how friendship ought to be, but it also reminded her why she was changing.

The laughing became louder and louder and Will found it more difficult to stay focused. Sounds of breaking branches and of crunched leaves filled the space around her and she heard some gasps. She remained silent, not even bothering to open her eyes. Those kids would either bugger off or she would make them.

"I know her. She was there when we entered the castle. Why is one of the maids sitting here?"

Mmmm…Perhaps it had been a better idea to make herself known to the personnel. That way they wouldn't dare to get this close to her and maybe she would have had some peace. But now she had at least one more chance to have some fun.

"Hey! Why are you not in the kitchens?"

She slightly raised her eyebrow, not liking the comment the little boy threw at her. Being a sexist was Cedric's and hers job and this little boy was pushing his luck.

"What are doing?"

"Don't! You'll get into trouble!"

The two voices were hushed and a little scared. Will wondered if they knew more of her than the little rude boy. The sound of footsteps reached her ears and without a warning she felt a prodding sensation in her hip. It wasn't hurting, but it was annoying. Especially since the boy kept continuing, almost asking to be killed.

"Jason! Stop it!" A girl's voice whispered urgently.

The prodding did not stop. In fact it only became more annoying as the boy seemed to ignore the girl's warnings. He even started to throw insults at her in the hope of taunting her. They were more childish than the ones Irma would think of but Will couldn't help but feel a degree of annoyance. How was she supposed to train when…?

A sudden spark caught her attention. Her eyes were closed, she was sure of it, but she could see it…No, she felt it. She felt a small spark when the boy poked her once more. With the next poke she saw more sparks. The more pokes she received from the unknowing kid, the more energy she started to sense. Soon she felt a constant flow of energy. She did not only sense the boy, but she sensed the energies of the kids near her, the ants on the ground, the birds in the trees and the gardeners a little further. So the kid was useful, at least for a bit.

"Do you reckon she's dead?"

She was almost smiling at the question. No, she was not dead, but soon someone else would be.

"No stupid! You saw her raise her eyebrow! Now stop it!" Another voice ordered.

How cute, they were fighting amongst themselves. Maybe she should stop the trouble maker from breaking their friendship. She wouldn't bare it to see their hearts break. She'd rather saw to it that something else broke.

"Hey maid! Get back to the kitchen!"

If there was something she wouldn't allow anyone to do, it would be ordering her. The kid had been poking and insulting her, without even thinking of what she might do to him. It was clear that he hadn't been raised properly and she would see to it that this was the last mistake the little brat would make.

She grabbed for the energy, to the place where she guessed his throat was. Her eyes snapped open when she felt her hand close around a thin throat and she lifted the little, brown haired boy with just one hand. The little kid had to be around six and his big, blue eyes were looking at her in fear. The other kids screamed in terror but they stayed around. She didn't want them to leave and her magical pressure was enough to make them stay where they were. She allowed her darkness to spread, creating a colder atmosphere around herself and to her delight she saw the kids shiver and cry. She now understood why the villains always wanted to be feared. It gave such a better feeling than being loved.

The screams seemed to have attracted the gardeners but they all stopped when they saw who was exactly holding a little boy in a death grip. One of the gardeners fell on his knees and looked beseechingly at her.

"Please my Lady, he is my son. Whatever he did, please punish me." The man said stutteringly.

She could feel how the man's energy was reeking of desperation. She didn't even know why. The guy had his wife and with the medieval policy regarding kids, he should have a new one in no time. One more or less wouldn't be the biggest problem.

"Your son?" She asked, her voice as cold as ice.

Everyone present shivered and she only smirked. The man already knew that she wouldn't let his son live.

"How come your son is this rude? I sincerely hope your other children are better raised than him."

The little boy in her hand squirmed and his eyes were wide with fear. So he could feel his imminent death. This was more fun than she'd imagined it would be. The gardener bowed deeper and she saw the sweat pearl down his forehead, while tears streaked the little boy's face. There was a satisfaction in all of this and she wondered if she should do this more often.

"M-My Lady…I swear I'll raise him properly. Please, I beg of you." The gardener stuttered.

She chuckled. She truly believed the man, but it was just too bad that he had to raise his other children. She increased the force in her grip and the boy started to choke. The boy's eyes tried to find his father but he couldn't turn his head enough.

"F-F-Fa…Ther…" The boy managed to choke out.

Will grinned as she saw how the man looked up, fear, hurt and anger being the only emotions he showed. She loosened her grip, giving the boy some chance to breath and making the gardener think she would let him go. Too bad. The moment the boy gasped for breath she increased her grip again, this time adding lightning to the choking, killing the kid instantly.

All of the children were looking with fear at her while the gardener looked lost at the body at his son, which she now threw in front of him. The other gardeners had taken the liberty of going to the children and pulling them away, not daring to look at her. The man who had been begging for his son's life looked up at her as she towered above him. Tears streamed carelessly down his face and a slight hint of anger was in his eyes, though it was quickly overshadowed with fear.

"You should make sure that your other children know how to show respect. At least, if you don't want to lose them as well that is." She said, a hint of laughter in her voice.

The man's tears were fun to watch as he bent over his dead son. He would be over it in a week and his wife would be pregnant in a month. She watched him as he took the boy in his arms and slowly got up. His eyes went to her and even though he was taller than her, he only looked more humble. His eyes showed nothing but fear and sorrow and she waved him away. There was a time for everything and she could always gloat another time. The man slowly stumbled away, his sobs echoing through the air around her. Parental love, such a sweet thing.

"Are you planning to stay there all day or what?"

She didn't bother to turn around as she felt how an energy closed in on her. She heard how the person breathed a laugh.

"So your sensing abilities are growing?"

Will turned her head, a wicked grin on her face as she faced the platinum blonde, 17-year old girl. Her own cinnamon brown eyes staring into two whirls of silvery blue.

"I had some help." Will said with a grin.

Elyon nodded and looked at the gardener, who's sobs were still audible. Will detected some sadness for the man in her eyes, but there was also something she recognized as pure malicious delight. So the Light was indeed growing darker.

"You really should stop killing off our personnel. Soon we'll have no one left." She said and Will detected a hint of a joke.

She shrugged lazily before turning around, completely facing Elyon.

"You know how it works here." She replied. "One goes, two take its place."

Elyon snickered at that and came closer. Will sensed that the girl was having some doubts and was perhaps feeling a bit lonely. She raised an eyebrow when Elyon gave her a questioning glance, as if she was asking her to join her in her stroll around the garden. She shrugged it off and followed her. Her training was done for today, so why not enjoy some time off?

What was it? The fourth person who was killed by Will…This week? The girl really should find another way to relieve stress or whatever was bothering her. True, it wasn't fair of Elyon to think so. She had killed her own share of people out of boredom and perhaps some stress, though they did not work in their castle. She had never thought she would take lives to kill some time, but she was actually liking the sound of screams and she wondered if her own brother would scream like that when she, together with the others, would come to finish his life.

Now that she thought about it, was it really a good idea to take their revenge on the Guardians? After all, they were only being manipulated by her brother, so if her brother was dead, would they return to normal? Would the Guardians join them? Not if Will got her way. She wondered why Will actually wanted her revenge on her fellow Guardians instead of Phobos.

"Are you planning on joining me or will you stay here?"

Elyon blinked at Will, who's dark mahogany eyes rested on her face. Elyon wondered about what she was talking. She was walking with Will, wasn't she?

"S-Sorry?" She asked surprised.

"Miranda, Cedric and Caleb all want their revenge on Phobos and the Guardians." Will said, her voice growing colder when she mentioned her old friends. "What about you? Are you willing to follow me?"

So she finally asked. Elyon had noticed how Will had been trying to gain her loyalty but she seemed to have gotten tired of it. Which was good, seeing that Elyon wasn't sure how long she could stay 'neutral'.

"I want my revenge on Phobos." She said softly, her voice cracking a bit at the thought of her brother. "But the girls…They haven't done anything wrong. They are just manipulated by him, right?"

She looked Will in the eye, hoping to find a form of support, a sparkle of hope in the redhead's darkened eyes, but Will only replied with a snicker. There was no hope, no support. Will really wanted the death of the four Guardians.

"They are just manipulated?" She replied, her voice cold and menacingly. "No Elyon. Caleb is manipulated by me, but the Guardians are following Phobos with a clear mind. And don't forget that they follow Cornelia, you're supposed best friend. The one who shared a bed with your brother."

The words were hurting. Especially when Will called Cornelia her 'supposed best friend'. She had known Cornelia for years and that was actually the reason for Elyon to believe that she was manipulated. But Will was right. Elyon could easily see how Caleb was manipulated by Will, which was his own stupid fault, but none of the girls looked like him. They all seemed to be thinking straight. Her fist clenched a bit.

"But…She didn't do anything." Elyon tried to defend, but the longer she thought about the current topic, the more her defenses started to fall.

Will stopped walking and Elyon stopped as well. Will's eyes had left her and were now looking at the red roses next to them. The petals still held some raindrops from the day before and Elyon could not help but remember the beautiful gardens of Phobos's palace. They too held roses, although they were black while the ones they had were red. Elyon smirked at the irony. The flowers seemed to represent their masters.

"She wanted to expose the Guardians to you, the moment we knew you were the princess."

Will voice was cold and hushed. Elyon couldn't help but feel slightly uncomfortable at the sound.

"Y-You were the one who wanted to keep me in the dark." She countered, not exactly knowing where Will was going.

"Because you would freak if you knew, which was proven when Cedric came to get you." Will pointed out, her grin only showing wickedness.

"But if you told me instead of suddenly attacking me then…" Elyon retorted, trying to keep some of her defenses.

"You would have thought we were crazy and called us liars. Don't fool yourself Elyon. Either way you would have come here." Will retorted coldly.

Elyon sighed. She knew she would have called them crazy if they'd told her and that would have made it easier for Cedric to take her. Maybe if they'd never told her and if they'd managed to expose Cedric then maybe she wouldn't be here. Then maybe she would still be in Heatherfield, watching television with her math homework in front of her. Now she was standing in an early spring garden next to the person she once loathed the most and who could scare her more than her worst nightmares.

"But Cornelia…"

She knew it was a faint attempt, but her heart sought for a way out. A way to the safety she once knew. The certainty of her old life. A way out of this darkness that was enveloping her.

Her eyes started to water, something she hated. She didn't want to cry. She didn't want to show Will that she was scared. Scared of losing the last thing that kept her sane.

A flicker in Will's eyes told her more than enough but Will's voice trailed merciless through the air.

"Cornelia is probably thinking of how to torture you right now, just because you ran away and refused her chance to become Queen."

She turned her head, not wanting to look at the red roses. Her vision blurred completely as tears were falling relentlessly down her cheeks. Her heart was hurting her and she felt her fists clench and tremble. How could Will be so sure? Cornelia wouldn't…Would she?

"It's a lie." She said.

Her voice was broken like an old record and her usual high voice seemed even higher. She felt a hand on her shoulder but she shook it off. She didn't need Will's fake sympathy. She just wanted a lie. A little bedtime story in which was told that everything would end well.

"You know I'm not lying. Don't let your past cloud your judgment." Will's voice said, the cold tone holding a bit of sympathy.

She tried to refuse it, but wasn't she the one who had heard Cornelia talking to Phobos about her death? She could remember the glee in Cornelia's voice and she felt as if something pierced through her heart. Until now she'd never thought of it. Maybe she just repressed it or maybe she wouldn't believe it. Maybe she thought it was just one gigantic nightmare. But she had never thought that reality would crash on her like this.

She felt her knees buckle and she let herself fall on her knees, her hands in front of her face as the tears kept falling. How could she? Why did Cornelia want to become Queen? Had those years of friendship meant nothing to her?

Again she felt the hand on her shoulder, but this time she didn't shake it off. Will's presence suddenly seemed less creepy and more protective. Even if she felt a creepy cold going through her shoulder, it was still calming her. She slowly noticed how her thoughts of Cornelia's betrayal were stored somewhere in her mind while her attention went to the cold that was entering. Once it reached her heart she noticed that she had stopped crying. She slowly removed her hands from her face and through her still blurry vision she could see a red blur. The blur slowly changed into one of the roses of the garden and Elyon looked surprised up at Will, who was smiling sadly at her, while her eyes only showed victory.

"I'm sorry you had to find out like this. I always thought you knew." She said, though her voice held no sorrow. "Take this rose as a token of my…friendship."

The word friendship sounded bitter, coming from her, but Elyon just grinned. Will was not planning on having friends ever again and somewhere, she understood why. Friends would only betray you in the end. She accepted the rose and she felt how the thorns pricked gently in her skin. Just as gently as Will was influencing her.

"Thank you." She replied.

Will smiled at her, the cold grin that was usually plastered on her face, when her attention suddenly went somewhere else, her eyes searching for something outside the garden. When Will's gaze returned to her she saw a spark of life of which Elyon had thought it had died long ago. But the malicious intent was there as well.

"You know what? Seeing that you want me to stop killing our personnel, what about you think of something to test our skills. If you can't think of something before dinner I'm afraid you'll have to prepare yourself for some regular brawls between you and me."

With that she left, leaving Elyon completely alone in the garden, confused and slightly scared of the hidden threat in the friendly proposed question. As Will's red hair disappeared from view, Elyon felt a sudden jab of pain. She looked at her hand and she saw that she had been clenching the hand that held the rose. She opened it slowly to find that the rose had pricked her and blood trickled down her hand. A sudden idea came to her mind. She knew a way to have some fun and test their strength. And a way to give Phobos and the rebellion something to break their heads on.

**…**

Blunk's heart was pumping so hard it was hurting Blunk. One moment Blunk was hugging Blunk's momma and the other moment Blunk was blind and tight up, smelling the scary spider girl. The screams of Blunk's momma still rang in Blunk's ears. Blunk couldn't scream, for she had bound Blunk's mouth with her silk. Blunk could still smell momma's blood, even when the smells of a foreign forest wafted past Blunk.

Now all Blunk could smell was stone and roses while a strange coldness chilled Blunk. Where did the spider girl bring Blunk? Blunk didn't know this smell and Blunk's fear was only increasing. Blunk felt more scared than when Blunk was inside the dungeons and Blunk couldn't stop shaking. The smell of the spider girl was still there and Blunk was scared she was preparing herself to eat Blunk too. Blunk didn't want to die.

Steps echoed and Blunk tried to turn his head, hoping to get some sight. Blunk wished Blunk's momma was here. Momma, Caleb or the Guardians.

He heard a door open and a familiar smell was caught by his nose. But girls said she was dead. Nose must be wrong except…Blunk's nose was never wrong.

"Blunk?"

That voice. Blunk recognized it immediately. Was Blunk dead? Was she alive? Was she saving Blunk? Was Blunk dead?

The silk was ripped away with an ease Blunk couldn't remember but then his eyes laid on the familiar colors of red and brown and Blunk felt how his heart leapt to his throat. She was alive! Blunk was alive! She would safe Blunk!

Her purple eyes watched the scene closely as Will went to work. She had no clue to why she had to bring the Passling here or why she had to stay in the room. But she knew that she was interested in what Will was planning to do. She already seemed in a good mood when she walked in and the aura she was emitting was more influencing than ever. Was she trying to persuade the Passling into joining?

"Will!"

The Passling screeched in happiness and Miranda couldn't help but roll her eyes. The stupid troll thought he was being saved. How dense could someone be? Will quickly loosened the bindings around his arms, but let those around his feet intact. So she knew he would try to escape.

"Will not dead?"

Again the most obvious question in the universe but Miranda refrained herself from sighing. If it was up to her she tried to mind the attention of the Passling for as long as she could.

Will breathed a short laugh before letting her fingers caress the filthy cheek of the Passling. How she could adore these creatures was beyond her comprehension.

"No Blunk, I'm very much alive."

Her voice seemed warmer than normal and Miranda watched with increased interest to how the Passling hugged Will, while Will's eyes only shone with malicious delight.

"Blunk happy! Guardians happy too if they find Will alive!" The Passling said in a way too enthusiastic way.

Miranda stayed silent. Will's eyes only became darker as she looked at the Passling and the Passling was starting to feel the anger Will was transmitting. He stopped his squirming and he even forgot about the bindings around his feet. His big, bloodshot eyes looked almost scared at Will and Will gave him an almost sorrowful look.

"Blunk. I saved you, you know that?"

Miranda's interest grew. What was she talking about? Surely she 'saved' the Passling now but Miranda was sure that Will wasn't referring to that. But what else could it be?

The Passling nodded his head like a complete moron.

"Blunk knows. Will come safe Blunk from spider girl." He said stupidly.

Miranda raised an eyebrow as Will shook her head. She felt her confusion rise when she turned to her and beckoned her to close in. The Passling tried to wriggle himself lose from the last bindings when he noticed her coming closer but Will stopped him.

"Blunk. I sent Miranda to safe you."

Miranda had to hold herself on a nearby table or else she would have fallen from sheer confusion. What the? What was she trying? She was practically lying to the little troll and she doubted it that the troll would believe her.

She looked at the Passling and saw that she wasn't the only one who was confused. The Passling looked completely flabbergasted from her to Will and back. She could see the fear growing in his eyes and the little rat stumbled backwards, falling on his butt because of his bound legs.

"Will and spider girl? Will work for Phobos?" The Passling stuttered scared. "Will bad?"

Miranda didn't know if she should laugh or feel sorry for the Passling. The Passling didn't know that he just compared Will with the ones who did the real damage, but he was also right. Will was evil.

Will shook her head calmly. Miranda was sure that Will would have killed him if he was someone from the personnel.

"No Blunk. I don't work for Phobos. Miranda doesn't either. We saved you from him and the Guardians."

The Passling's eyes widened, if possible, even more and he stared at Will as if she was crazy. Miranda couldn't help but feel the same. What was Will trying to accomplish? Surely, the Passling wouldn't be as stupid as to believe a straight lie, mixed with some truth.

"The Guardians sided with Phobos, Blunk." Will said, her voice sounding bitter and grave. "I found out about it and I want to stop them. Miranda followed me."

She felt how the eyes of the Passling fell on her. The Passling looked more and more lost, but she could still see the suspicion in his eyes. He wasn't going to believe her that quickly. Miranda raised her eyebrow when Will reached out for the Passling. The moment her hand touched the Passling's shoulder the Passling's eyes went hazy.

"B-But…" He stammered, slowly seeming to lose his will to struggle. "Spider girl killed momma."

Miranda could see how Will's eyes lit up. The smirk was scaring even her and she wondered how the Passling could not see it. Will started to pet the little troll and she saw how her smirk changed into a very convincing sad look.

"I'm sorry Blunk. But the girls enthralled your momma. She would have killed you."

Miranda looked in sheer amazement at how the little Passling was accepting all these lies. She had seen Cedric at work and she always thought that he was a genius in deception, but Will seemed to do it with even more ease. The Passling started crying loudly and Miranda noticed how Will's gaze rested on her. She saw the triumph in the otherwise dark eyes and she wondered how this Passling would aid to their plans.

"Blunk hate other girls! Girls need punishment!" The Passling said, his voice filled with tears.

Will patted him on the head and nodded. She then brought his head up, so that he would look her in the eyes. Miranda saw the small shiver run over the Passling's back, but the little troll sobbed too much to notice his own fear.

"I need you Blunk. You can help me with their punishment."

Her voice was sweet and cold and Miranda couldn't help but be amazed by the redhead. The Passling nodded slowly and grabbed her hand. Miranda saw a strike of disgust on Will's face before it returned to the so-called compassionate look.

"Blunk do what Will says!"

Any normal person would try to see what they could get out of it and Miranda wondered how much Will polluted him with darkness to make a Passling forget about profit. Will's smile was creeping up and nodded solemnly.

"Good. You shall come here and report to me when and where a portal opens. Before you inform the Guardians." She said pleased.

"But Blunk not want to help Guardians." The Passling muttered.

Will caressed the little monkey's head.

"You have to. They must not know that I'm alive, or where Miranda is. They must think everything goes according to their plan."

The Passling nodded and Will pushed him a bit, gesturing him to go. The stupid troll saluted before running off and Miranda was sure she could see some black smoke coming from him. She turned to Will and to her unpleasant surprise she saw the black flame of Will. It had grown bigger in those two weeks and it was now nearly enveloping her. Her dark eyes fell on Miranda and Miranda unconsciously stepped back. She didn't want to get that infected with darkness.

The smile on Will's face was saying more than the rest of her body language and a soft and cold snicker escaped the redhead's lips.

"Good job Miranda." She said softly. "Go to your room. You deserve some rest."

Miranda nodded and slowly made her way out of the room, making a big curve around Will. She was nearly at the door when she bumped into Elyon. Her eyes widened in surprise. Elyon's normally white flame had grown dark and only a small speck was still white, though it was being threatened by the darkness surrounding it. Elyon's eyes, which were full of unknown happiness and love when she left, were now cold and dead, almost the same as Will's. A spark of malicious delight was swimming in those silver blue eyes and Miranda could not help but marvel at the fact of how much Elyon's eyes were resembling Phobos's.

"You're back."

Her voice had grown a lot colder and Miranda wondered if she really left for two weeks instead of two years. She nodded dumbly and saw how Elyon made a fake smile.

"I'm glad. I guess Will let you go. Sorry I bumped into you."

Miranda raised an eyebrow when Elyon stepped aside. The fake smile was still on her face and Miranda couldn't help but feel scared. She felt how Will's darkness was inviting her and she quickly passed Elyon. She wanted to go to her own room but Elyon's voice rang through the room she just left and Miranda halted. Listening in wouldn't be that much of a problem, would it?

"I found a answer to your question."

Question? What question? Were they playing games or what? Miranda stayed silent as Elyon continued.

"There is this little town, northeast from here. I think you know it. It has a big castle nearby. That could be a perfect spot to test our skills."

Elyon's voice was colder from her normal one and an evil laugh was hidden in the tone. Miranda felt how shivers ran up her spine when Will laughed loudly. She knew what they were planning. They were planning on killing people who had nothing to do with their vengeance. Not that Miranda cared about those people but it did show one thing. Neither Elyon or Will would return to the light. Elyon was lost in the darkness which was ruled by Will. And Miranda knew it was just a matter of time before she followed.

**…**

The moonlight shone softly on a picturesque village, a village she knew all too well. The big dark castle was looming over it, casting a dark shadow on it while a soft breeze blew past her red locks. From where she was standing she could see how small groups of guards were walking through the village, probably looking for rebels or maybe it was one of Phobos's vain attempts to find Elyon.

A smile graced her lips as her eyes fell on the blonde girl next to her. Phobos would probably eat his shoe if he knew how close his little sister was and Will was almost sure that Cornelia would start gasping for air if she knew it was Elyon who had proposed to come here and test their skills.

Will herself didn't really mind it either. Every death was just collateral damage after all. They all served for a higher purpose and after all…They all cheered for _them_. Death was almost too good for them.

She could feel the numerous amount of energies in the village and she made a mental note to train more with her energy sensing abilities when she got home. Now she was sensing too much energy to pinpoint the one she needed and if she would finally manage to sense the energies of the other elements, she would probably lose her mind.

She cracked her fingers and some energy sparked around them. Elyon averted her gaze back to her and Will saw a malicious smile creep over the girl's face.

"Shall we test our shapeshifting abilities first?"

Will breathed a laugh a how innocent the question sounded. It was one of the first things Cedric taught her, aside from glamouring and perfecting her teletransporting. She nodded in a silent reply and her eyes fell on the moon. The myths of werewolves always interested her and wolves themselves were rather ruthless predators. It was time to give the myth some new life.

She felt how her magic started to tingle throughout her body. This was a very unusual way for her to use her magic but in time she started to like the strange sensation. She felt how her magic started to pull and push her body and slowly but surely she let herself fall on her hands. Her hands had transformed into claws and a tail was sweeping behind her. Her teeth were sharper and had grown to the size of little daggers. Cedric had told her that they could choose their transformation. If they want to look exactly like the animal or if they wanted a more battle worthy version. And Will didn't feel like turning into a puny dog, this form was more menacing.

A howl came from beside her and she looked to see a wolf, much like herself only with white blonde ears, howling at the moon. A wolfish grin spread on her face and she too howled at the moon.

Tonight was a beautiful night for a hunt.

**...**

The darkness of the night had taken a hold of the capital of Metamoor and Aketon looked sadly at the giant castle which loomed darkly over his village. How long was Phobos planning on having his guards search through the city? If the Princess really left the castle then she should be somewhere far away by now, if not on Earth.

Aketon looked at the clock, which was hanging limply on the wall. Normally he slept around this time, but the sound of howling wolves had woken him. Wolves didn't come here and the howls indicated that they were hungry.

He had gotten up and locked the door. He then lit a small fire before grabbing one of his forged swords. He didn't trust the guards to handle this. They were too lazy and too uncaring to stop wolves from attacking villagers. Now Aketon was silently waiting near the newly lit fireplace.

For a long time, no sound was heard, except from some drunken laughter from the guards outside. Aketon felt how the sleep tried to envelop him in her cozy blankets as he once again forced his eyes to open. He was no longer a young boy and his old body was demanding sleep which he would give, the moment he was sure that the wolves were gone.

He shivered slightly and pulled the blanket from his bed. The spring was nearing and the nights had gotten warmer, but for some reason a cold started to chill his old bones. He had the eerie feeling that it was a foreboding. A sign that he had to watch out.

His eyes snapped open on full alert when he heard the cry of a guard. More followed and Aketon clenched the sword in his hands. He recognized those cries as the cries of death and Aketon couldn't help but wonder how many wolves had attacked the village if they could kill a group of guards without losing one of their own. More cries started to fill the night and Aketon could see how candles were lit in other houses near his. He swallowed the bile that had formed when he heard cries that didn't belong to guards, but to the citizens.

"Hurry! Quick!"

He heard a group of guards run past his forge when he heard the guards stop. He clenched his sweaty hands tighter around his sword when he heard the guards again.

"What's that?"

"Kill it!"

A growl and a howl followed before Aketon heard the screams of the guards and the sound of bodies hitting the ground. He was sure he heard a bark like laugh. An inexplicable cold flooded in through the cracks of the door. What was standing behind his door?

The answer came like an explosion. The door was being blown from its hinges and Aketon had to move quickly to avoid the door from hitting him. The moon illuminated the entrance and Aketon's eyes widened. Standing in his porch was a monstrous big wolf. Its fur was black except for the ears, which were blood red. Blood seeped past its teeth and a wolfish grin was plastered on its face. Two dark mahogany eyes were looking straight at him and Aketon felt how his body became immobile. The beast was spreading something, something dark and cold.

"Dea di Vita." He breathed in fear, invoking one of the Goddesses of Life of Metamoor.

For minutes, he stood there, looking at the wolf. Hours seemed to go by, yet it were just a couple of minutes before the wolf started to move. It slowly started to walk forward and Aketon wished he could remember how to use his arms and legs. His mouth fell open when a light started to envelop the wolf and Aketon watched in amazement and fear how the wolf transformed in the form of a girl. A girl he could remember and who was supposed to be death.

"You?" He breathed confused. "Why?"

The redhead smiled at him, the blood still on her face.

"I'm just practicing." She answered, her voice colder than what he could remember. "And I decided to drop by."

Aketon felt his control returning and he held up the sword and pointed at the girl in front of him. This was not the Guardian Leader he could remember. She was much colder.

"Don't come near me." He said, his voice wavering softly.

She smiled and let her gaze wander through his forge. He saw how her eyes rested on one of his finest swords and she raised her hand.

"Quintessence."

The sword obeyed the command and flew straight at her raised hand. She held it in the dim light of his fireplace, acting as he wasn't threatening her with a sword.

"Great craftsmanship." She commented, her voice holding something similar to admiring.

Normally he would have been honored to hear such a praise, but he had the feeling that she wasn't finished with him.

And he was proven to be right. She swept his sword out of his hands with one fluid motion and now the tip of the sword was pointed at his neck. Sweat pearled down his forehead and he looked in the dark eyes of the girl who once promised him that she would end the war.

"Why?" He croaked.

The girl snickered once more and the cold was filling his bones once more.

"Call it collateral damage." She said.

Aketon's eyes widened as she raised the sword, lightning sparking from the blade. He raised his hands in a vain attempt to stop the sword and closed his eyes. His mind went to Aldarn and how happy he was to order him to the Infinite City. He just hoped that Aldarn would keep his head cool and that Caleb would stop this witch.

The last thing he heard was a cold laughter before the feeling of cold steel, mixed with hot lightning ended his life.

_**[A/N] End of chapter. I so love evil Will. Kill here, Kill there, Kill everywhere! Also, my Italian isn't that good but what Aketon says is literally(I hope): Goddess of Life. But anyway, people I've put up a poll on which you need to vote. Until now two people have voted and it's a 50-50…Not very helpful.**_

_**Also people, I want you to direct you to the write Bloodprince1234. He's writing 2 W.I.T.C.H. fics. One is a crossover with Avatar and another uses the legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox. Both are pretty sweet, though my favorite is the fox story. Especially since I know what is going to happen :P**_

_**Something else?I think not…Except for this:**_

_**Review or I might put this story on hiatus!**_

_**Have a nice day.**_


	9. Chapter 8 Riot

**Chapter 8 Riot**

He was late. He just had to drink last night. Drake shook his head as he picked up the pace. Aldarn had already left, after making numerous attempts to wake him. It was his turn to watch the village for anything unusual or if any news about the Princess would rumor the streets. The previous guard, Albec, had to return last night but Drake was sure that the guy would have gone with a nice girl and had forgotten all about his duty. It wouldn't be the first time.

His pace slowed down when a familiar, sickening scent caught his nose. It was the scent of blood and death. His eyes widened and his pulse quickened as he took up the pace. Why did he smell this? Especially since the village was at least a quarter of a mile away and the scent was already this strong.

As he neared the village he felt his heart stop as his pace froze. Villagers were carrying bodies out of the village, all being rather bloody and mangled. How could this have happened? The scent was only stronger and when Drake neared, he could see that it were not only the bodies of villagers. There were more guards than villagers and Drake started to fear that Phobos perhaps had found a new toy. A new minion, more ruthless than Scutlers and more powerful than Cedric.

"It were wolves."

Drake turned around to see an old lady standing behind him, her old eyes watching the dead bodies with great sadness. Her grey hair fell filthy past her head and her back was arched. She was being supported by a stick in her right hand while the other was wrapped in a bandage.

"Wolves?"

Drake couldn't imagine any kind of wolves, not even Saberwolves, to be capable of doing so much damage. He hadn't seen any paws prints on his way here and he doubted that even a big group of wolves would be capable of killing so many guards and villagers.

"Yes. A pair of monstrous, ghostly wolves. They attacked at night, killing innocents and guards alike." The old woman said, fear laced in her voice. "One of them attacked me but before it could kill me, the other appeared. Both then disappeared."

Drake bit his tongue. This sounded so surreal. The rumored stories of the ghost wolves of Ahnk were going through his head. Was it possible that Phobos had found a way to resurrect the wolves of a King of old? They were said to be ruthless and that they would obey their master without question.

Drake felt the shivers going over his spine when a bloodcurdling scream came from the village. Had the wolves returned?

Drake forgot the old lady, who had looked startled at the source of the sound and he sped away. He knew that voice and he prayed to all Gods he knew that it wasn't what he thought he was. He prayed that he didn't have to tell Aketon that his son had died.

…

It wasn't true. His eyes were deceiving him. He couldn't believe it. How did this happen? He already had a foreboding feeling when he left for the village and it only grew when he'd seen Albec's dead body. But this. He'd never imagined to find him like this.

Aldarn fell on his knees, looking with death eyes to the corpse of his father, which he had just delved from the rubble from which was once his home and his father's forge. It lay broken in front of him and a large cut was drawn from his left shoulder to right hip, blood smudged over his body. His hand grabbed hopelessly for his father's, only to feel the cold skin, indicating that his soul had already left.

Tears crept up and they started to fall relentlessly. His father wasn't meant to die like this. Not by wolves. He felt how his whole composure slumped and he hugged his father's body, faintly smelling the fire of the forge over the lingering scent of death that swerved through the village.

"Aldarn!"

He didn't look up. He didn't care that Drake was here. He was late. He should have been here. He should have warned the rebellion of this attack. Instead he'd been drinking through the night and forgetting his duty.

"Is he…?"

Aldarn ignored the question and shot up, giving Drake the angriest glare he could muster through his tears. If only he'd been here. He could have helped his father fighting these ghost minions of Phobos. Then his father would still live. Now…

Drake's look had darkened and Aldarn saw that he was blaming himself as well, as he should. This was also Drake's fault, just like it was his fault for not urging his father to come with him. His tears kept falling and he looked away, not wanting to show Drake his weakness.

His heart stopped temporarily when he felt a warm hand around his torso and he turned his head to see Drake giving him one of his hugs. Drake's hand went to his head and Aldarn felt how he pressed a kiss on his forehead, like his father used to do.

"He's in a better place now."

It was a bitter consolation and Aldarn's gaze fell on his father's body once again. The slice through his body, as well as the ugly bruises, betrayed that he'd been killed, or else he would have been sleeping peacefully.

"I'll go and search the Guardians. They need to know this."

Aldarn felt his head nod slowly. He felt like he couldn't care. The Guardians had been more worthless than when their leader was alive. She helped with the plans and made sure her Guardians would help with raids. Now, they sporadically appeared in Metamoor and only since the Princess was gone, they came more often.

His hands found his father's body and he slowly lifted it up. He couldn't lay here, not between the rubble of their house. He at least deserved a grave before he would return to rebellion.

…

The sun was up and the birds were twittering their latest news to their neighbors. The wind blew softly and Hay Lin sat at the breakfast table, eating a bowl of her favorite cereals. Normally she would enjoy the twittering of the birds, the tired yawns of her neighbors and the other morning sounds, but she hadn't been in the mood. Everything had changed after they'd betrayed Will. Sure, things were going better. They often ate at the castle, getting marvelous bits of food and they even went so far as to introduce their parents and boyfriends to Phobos. Phobos wasn't really thrilled with meeting them, but he still acted like a caring host and now Hay Lin was sure that there was a place where she could hide her parents if an enemy ever showed interest in them. Her grandmother wasn't happy with this either. Hay Lin wasn't sure if her grandmother knew that they'd killed Will, but she was sure that she knew about Cornelia's relationship with the Dark Prince. But her grandmother would soon know that this was the best option for all of them. There was no way that they would have won and joining the enemy was something Will never even thought of and what ended with her death.

But there was a foreboding feeling that made her somber. And somber was not her usual mood. She actually hated it more than she hated anything else. But it was the air that was warning her. A clear warning swept past her every day she walked to school and it was even infiltrating her dreams. They were always the same. Her parents dying while a cold laughter filled the space around her, followed by endless running through a forest she didn't know. The person responsible for this was never shown in her dreams. Because every time she would look up at the face of the culprit, she woke up, sweat dripping down her face and her heart pumping like mad, sometimes she even screamed in fear.

She had explained her dreams to the others, but they waved it away as something like test stress. Her grandmother had told her to heed the warning, but Hay Lin wasn't sure if she knew what to do. She didn't know how to stop that future. And frankly, she didn't believe it would happen. She reckoned that it was just her conscious that was still coping with her betrayal.

"Good morning little one."

She looked up from her bowl with colorful cereal to smile at her grandmother. The woman kept supporting her, despite the fact that she had joined Phobos and Hay Lin truly respected that. Her grandmother did warn her every time she left, telling her that this story was running to a dark ending, but those words fell to deaf men's ears. She was old enough to decide her destiny, wasn't she?

"Mornin' grandma." She said, her smile not faltering.

Her grandmother watched her with wrinkled eyes and Hay Lin felt as if she was about to be interrogated. She shook her head slightly and ate a spoon full of cereal. If she had food in her mouth, she couldn't reply.

"Have you heard anything from Kandrakar?"

Hay Lin rolled her eyes. Of course did her grandmother want to hear about Kandrakar. Then she wouldn't be the only one warning her. Hay Lin was honestly happy with the Veil. True, they couldn't fold to all the worlds, but it also stopped Kandrakar from breathing in their necks.

"No grandma. They haven't summoned us. You know how much energy it costs for them to create a portal in the Veil and it would only weaken the thing." She replied before taking another spoon.

Her grandmother sighed and rubbed over her wrists. Hay Lin recognized this as a habit from her grandmother. She only did it when she felt that something was wrong, but Hay Lin found that her grandmother's bones were acting like that when the fish wasn't fresh, so she was not worried.

"There is something dark in the air." She said.

Hay Lin couldn't help but agree with her. Maybe that was also a reason why she felt so somber. The air was thick and heavy, as if this was Will's last way of revenge. Haunting them like this.

Hay Lin sighed a bit before drinking the milk from her bowl. Things would lighten up eventually. They always did.

She placed her bowl down and was ready to take her coat. She and the girls had planned to go to a movie and after that, they would take their guys to Metamoor for some fun. Eric had accepted her role as Guardian and he was so cute when he marveled at the weirdness of Metamoor. Nigel had been a bit more hesitant, but Taranee had shown him her more fiery side and he was quickly persuaded to join them.

"Grandma, I'm goi…"

The words hadn't left her mouth when the door opened and a familiar face stared into the empty restaurant. His long blond hair was hanging over his eyes, which were wide in fear and relief.

"Guardian. Thank the Gods I've found you."

Hay Lin couldn't believe her eyes. What was he doing here? And how did he find her anyway? He never went to Earth. Usually it was either Blunk or Caleb. This was certainly new and it wasn't a good sign.

"Drake?"

…

How unfair could life get? She received a bad grade yesterday because she'd been searching for Elyon in Metamoor for the past two weeks and now, when she finally thought to relax a bit, they get called away again. Somewhere she had the nagging feeling that Kandrakar was behind all this. She was sure that those stiff dusty people in their white serene environment were looking at them with disgust and repulse. Well, that's what you get for sending under-aged girls into a war. The Oracle should have known it.

Her foot was tapping irritated on the ground and she looked around, hoping to find an indication when Irma was coming. How could she be late? If she'd come early, they would manage to get back in time to catch the late movie with the other boyfriends.

Huffing echoed through the air and Cornelia turned around, seeing Irma running at them with a red head. What a drama that girl could make.

"Finally! Do you know this is urgent?"

Her voice was thick with annoyance and Irma's rebellious blue eyes narrowed as her gaze shifted to her. The girl should stop rebelling like this. It was fun to irk Will with it, but now it was getting plain annoying.

"I'm sorry Corny, but have you any idea how difficult it is to get a babysitter in a short time?"

She rolled her eyes. Irma's brother should be old enough to stay home alone, but her parents were so damned protective. Cornelia was still surprised that they let Irma be a Guardians, but then again. Taranee's parents had agreed as well and they were worse.

"Fine." She said indifferently. "Just transform and we'll go. Drake is waiting at the other side."

Irma transformed almost immediately but it was Taranee who looked surprised at her.

"Drake? I thought Blunk had given you the information?"

Hay Lin shook her head and Cornelia lead them to the portal, while the youngest member of their group explained what had happened. She had first called Cornelia and explained the whole situation, in a Hay Lin manner, before Cornelia had contacted Taranee and Irma.

She sighed as Irma wondered loudly why Drake had come. As if she cared. The important thing was that there was a new enemy, one that could be a threat to her rise to royalty. And things that were in her way, needed to be removed.

The familiar crackling of lightning and the strange feeling of stepping through a veil of water passed her and she was looking at a grim looking Drake. She heard the portal crackle behind her, indicating that the others had followed her. Drake nodded grimly as a way of greeting and Cornelia just flipped her hair. She had no time for formalities.

On her sign, Irma and Hay Lin grabbed Drake and pulled him up. Taranee followed to one of the many entrances of the Infinite City. They had to gather as much information as possible, as soon as possible.

'_Off to Phobos?'_

Taranee's voice rang through her head like a worried mother. The girl should relax, she had become more jumpy over the days but Cornelia was sure she would calm down eventually.

'_Yeah, maybe he knows more.'_

At least, she hoped he did.

…

He had felt it. The familiar rush of energy that told him she had passed the Veil. He could only sense her energy, seeing how familiar it was thanks to their interactions. A smirk played on his lips, even if he knew that this was not for pleasure. She had told him she would come near the evening, together with the other Guardians and their meaningless boyfriends. For her to arrive at early midday, meant only that there had happened something and that she wanted more information.

He threw his Viewing sands on the ground, watching how his blonde Goddess was flying leisurely past his guards. He smiled as she just glamoured from their sight. She was truly skilled and her grace was something he would only describe to Goddesses alone.

His gaze went to the Angel which flew through his window and dropped her glamour. Her gaze was dark and her pose expressed a high level of annoyance. Her arms were crossed in front of her remarkable chest and her delicate eyebrow was raised.

"So…What's the deal? Was that attack your plan or?"

He bowed his head slightly, as a way to greet her and to remind her of courtesy. She was, after all, in a castle and his future Queen. She could not really expect to forget these little things, even if she was urged.

"No greeting? Surely I thought you looked sternly on these things." He said, slightly joking.

Her serious face faltered a bit before her frown returned. She was good at keeping her emotions in control and he truly admired it.

"I'm sorry my Prince." She said, sarcasm ringing in her voice. "But I really need to know if you killed your own men and the villagers. I need to know if I should worry or not."

He nodded. He didn't want to show it but he was concerned as well. The rumored wolves had been this close to his castle and he could feel the magic of these two attackers. He knew they were strong magic users, but he did not know why these magic users did not attack him as well. If they could so easily kill off his guards in the village, than why not try and kill him all together?

"No, they were not sent by me. But I also don't believe that they are the rumored ghost wolves. No, they're stronger than that. Maybe even as strong as you."

He smirked when he saw her eyebrow raise skeptically. She was never fond of the idea that someone could be stronger than her. Her pride was admirable.

"Any idea where they went?"

He shook his head with a tired sigh. All of his guards had died and he had no one who could exactly describe the wolves. If they could, he would have found them already through his Viewing sands. Cornelia sighed in annoyance. He understood her anger. If his wretched sister hadn't run away, he would be King and she his Queen and then perhaps these wolves hadn't showed up at all.

He got up from his throne, slowly advancing on his very own Goddess. Her eyes were still dark and he could almost feel the anger and annoyance radiating from her. She held so many emotions bottled up inside of her and yet she kept her calm. So she had been learning from him.

His hand caressed the soft skin just beneath the icy blue eyes that were staring at him with slight annoyance. His thumb caressing her lips. He could see longing in her eyes and he came closer.

"I know they killed a lot of villagers and even more guards." He whispered softly at her.

She didn't lean forward yet he kept advancing. Before he could even feel the soft sensation of her lips on his, she turned around with her arms crossed.

"I don't have time for this!"

The annoyance was palpable and Phobos sighed. Maybe this wasn't the time and she was right. Things had to be done. If there was a third party in this war, he needed to find a way to contact it and make an alliance. Not because he needed the power, but to protect himself. Even if he had the Guardians and Regents of Earth at his side, he couldn't risk losing to this anonymous third party. Not when victory was so close.

"I'll go to the rebellion. Maybe they know more."

He nodded. Being a tyrant had its perks, but people tended to keep things from you out of fear. The rebellion was, how ironic as it sounded, his biggest source of information. Not that they knew that and he preferred it that way.

She turned around and her hair swept past him, leaving yellow leaves on the ground while her seductive eyes found his. In one bold move she kissed him passionately on his lips and he had to force himself to keep it at a kiss. A distant scream came from his dungeons and he felt how Cornelia pulled away, her eyes still shining and a smirk on her lips.

"Another rebel?"

He shrugged, his own grin copying hers.

"They are so foolish to enter my grounds."

She grinned before her miniscule wings, too small to actually be capable of lifting her, started to flap and she slowly started to hover above him. He despised looking up at someone and he knew that this was exactly her reason to do so.

He watched her as she flew away. Only when she disappeared from his eyesight his gaze darted to the ground, where a small heap of golden leaves was laying on the ground.

He stepped over it and walked out of his throne room. If a maid hadn't cleaned it up before he returned, he could play some more.

…

His eyes wandered over the panicking mass in front of him. He was oddly calm as he watched how his fellow rebels were worrying about the ghost wolves. Things were going downhill. Caleb was gone, once again on his pleasure trips. He was forsaking his duty. And he didn't even seem to bother with telling him what he was doing.

The Guardians were a menace as well. They looked even more bored than before and only showed up to get some intelligence about the progress in finding the Princess. And the blonde, the Earth Guardian, always appeared later than the others.

He couldn't stand it. People were suffering more and more and yet he felt as if the rebellion was being used. As if they were playing on a giant chessboard. Phobos on one side, the rebellion on the other.

"If Phobos holds power over the Ghost Wolves of Ahnk then we are doomed!"

"We need Caleb! He will know what to do!"

His blood started to boil. Caleb. Caleb wasn't here. He was never here when he was needed. He was either on Earth or on his self-appointed mission. He wouldn't do anything. He was not fit to be a leader. Not anymore.

"SILENCE!"

The rebels held their breath and looked surprised at him. Aldarn sighed. They were not really used to him holding any form of authority but they had to see that panicking was not an option. That Caleb was not an option.

From the corner of his eye he noticed the Guardians entering, the Earth Guardian trailing not far behind them. So Drake managed to reach them.

He felt the tension and the weight of the eyes which were resting upon him and he swallowed. Now was not the time to struggle back. They needed a leader. Someone who could see clear. Someone who would not run off by the slightest problem.

"Caleb won't come! Don't you see?"

He hated that he sounded so childish. So unsure and desperate. Were his fellow rebels so blind that they could not see how Caleb was misleading them?

"Aldarn, you're too young to consider these things!" One of the rebels yelled. "Remember the last time you challenged him?"

He swallowed. He could remember what happened last time he questioned Caleb's leadership but back then he was influenced by the Princess and Caleb wasn't forsaking his duty. But now…Caleb wasn't the man he used to be.

"I was influenced by the Princess." He defended himself.

The man gave a dry laugh and Aldarn felt his blood boil. Why were they so blind? They didn't even seem to know that as long as they were waiting for Caleb, the more advantage Phobos would gain. He casted a look at the Guardians, but they looked passively at the scene in front of him.

"Don't you see?" He countered. "The longer we wait, the bigger the chance is that Phobos will get us! We need to stay alert and that won't work with a leader who disappears and appears whenever he pleases!"

More people started to murmur and more and more people were murmuring in his advantage. They were opening their eyes. They were seeing that Caleb was not the best choice for a leader.

…

Why should he wait? Aldarn was undermining his authority. Why was he accepting all of this?

He stood silent, leaning against one of the pillars, neatly hidden in the shadows. None of the rebels had seen him and he kept listening to Aldarn's rant against him. Okay, perhaps he was right. Perhaps he was forsaking his duty, but they didn't know what was going on. They didn't know the rebellion was being used. If Will would just show herself to the rebellion, then this war would have been over and the Guardians and would be groveling at her feet.

"But we have to wait until he comes back!"

Caleb smiled as another man stepped forward. They wouldn't leave him. They knew what loyalty was, unlike Aldarn. His supposed friend.

He spat silently on the floor. Will was right. There were no friends, only people who knew what loyalty was and people who waited for the right moment to betray you. You could not trust anyone.

"And what if he returned over two months?" Aldarn countered. "Phobos would probably have killed us before he returns! We need to take action. Right here, right now!"

The foul, little traitor. He cracked his knuckles silently, meaning to let him join his father.

'_Do not harm him.'_

He winced as the cold voice ran through his head. She was warning him, watching his every movement. He swallowed and let his shoulders relax. He had to remain calm. He had to do this, no matter the cost. Saving his honor here would be pointless.

"But what if he comes back today or tomorrow? Shouldn't we wait for just a day?"

A small flame of unwanted pride flared up inside him when he saw Aldarn stepping forward, claiming the attention of all the rebels.

"No! We can't wait! We can't bet on a wild card!" He said, his anger clearly showing.

Several gasps came from the crowd and Caleb grinned. Aldarn would get a whole riot on his hands if he continued like this. He would get himself killed.

'_Now is your time.'_

He sighed and stepped forward. As if a spell was upon him, all faces turned to him and he saw Aldarn's paled face. His mouth hang open and his eyes were big. Caleb felt how a grin grew on his face. How he would love it to stab the traitor. Right here, right now. His hand twitched slightly above his sword before he started clapping for Aldarn. Although he meant it as sarcasm, he saw Aldarn coloring red of embarrassment. The boy was easily mislead.

"I applaud you Aldarn." He said, trying to keep his voice as friendly as normal. "Indeed, you can't bet hundredths of lives on me. I'm too much of a risk. You are completely right."

From the corner of his eyes he saw Cornelia, Taranee and Irma raising their eyebrows while Hay Lin's jaw actually dropped. Several of the rebels whispered confused and shocked and Aldarn's complete composure fell. Why Will wanted to make him the new leader of the rebellion was a mystery for him. Aldarn was young, rash, stupid and above all too naïve to lead the rebellion. He would lead them to their deaths quicker than he said Phobos's panties.

"I am…?" Aldarn said, his stupor still obvious on his face. He quickly recovered and looked unsure yet cocky. "I-I mean. Of course I am."

Caleb repressed the urge to roll with his eyes. How did he not notice what a child Aldarn was? He kept his grin however and bowed his head for him. Now was the trick to sweet-talk him in such a way that he didn't even notice that he was manipulating him.

He bowed his head once again, keeping the charade up, and sighed heavily.

"Thanks to you I've opened my eyes, my friend." He said, silently cursing the word 'friend'. If there was a word that suited Aldarn more, it would be traitor, swine and more, rather nasty things.

"Therefore, I hereby denounce my position as leader of the rebellion. My undercover mission brings the rebellion in too much danger. I also vote for Aldarn to become the new leader. Who is in favor?"

A silence ruled the Infinite City. Men and women looked surprised and confused from him to Aldarn and back. Aldarn himself seemed to be struggling with several feelings and looked incredulously at him. Slowly hands started to rise and he knew that they were only voting for Aldarn because he did. They were trusting him, the fools. Perhaps he was not a good leader after all. They were all naïve and stupid, thinking that the war could end so simply as Aldarn was trying to make them believe. He could barely hide his smirk as the rebels noticed how the majority voted in Aldarn's favor and started cheering. They all shook Aldarn's hand and Caleb shook his head. The people would get a monarch they deserved, or at least a rebel leader. If they wanted stupid, they got it.

He noticed how Aldarn's eyes stayed on him, as well as the eyes of the Guardians and he decided it was better to take a quieter place to tell the five of them about the 'rumors' he had heard. He slipped through the human mass and quickly managed to hide in his former tent.

His father was reading a book and looked up when he entered the tent. Caleb cursed his bad luck. He could easily out clever Aldarn and the Guardians, but he wondered if he could lie straight to his father. He then noticed the dull look in his father's eyes. He stared at him with eyes that reminded Caleb of transmarchers or enthralled people. As he kept staring at his father's dull eyes, the canvas was pushed aside and the Guardians, followed by Aldarn, stormed in. Aldarn's look was full of rage, yet he seemed to stop himself when his eyes fell on Julian.

"Julian…I…I didn't know you were…" Aldarn said, looking awkwardly at Julian.

Julian didn't reply and put his book away. He got up and walked slowly past Aldarn and Caleb. Before he left he placed his hand on Caleb's shoulder and gave him a ghostly smile.

"Don't mind me. I'm already leaving." He said, his voice sounding a bit zombie-like, though it was masked by the cheering of the rebellion outside. "And Caleb, your informant stopped by. She told me that she would be waiting for you at your usual place."

Caleb could easily put one and one together, yet he wondered how she had managed to slip in without him, or anyone else for that matter, noticing her. He silently cursed her rashness, but admitted at the same time that she thought of everything, which slightly scared him.

Julian walked past him and once he was out of the tent, Caleb felt a strong jab in his stomach, making him gasp for air out of surprise while some of the Guardians gasped in faked surprise and concern.

'_Pussy.'_ Her voice said with glee.

He spat some bile, which had formed in his mouth the moment he received the punch, and looked up at the angry features of Aldarn. Before he could get a good look at Aldarn's face, he felt yet another fist connecting with his body, this time hitting him full on his eye. He nearly fell down and held his hand on his eye while his other eye searched for Aldarn's face. Aldarn's eyes were shooting fire and his mouth was twisted in an angry sneer. Caleb could easily tell he was angered, but he did not know why.

"You think you're funny?" Aldarn whispered harshly at him, tears forming in his angered eyes. "You've got some nerve, showing up and renouncing like that."

Cornelia stepped forward, trying to calm Aldarn down, but Caleb straightened and gave her a warning glare. If there was something he didn't want, it would be being helped by _her_.

Aldarn tried to throw another punch, again aiming for his face, but Caleb blocked the punch easily and pushed him away, even if every fiber in his being was practically begging for him to kill Aldarn right here, right now.

"What's your problem?" He asked heated, gladly showing his anger.

Aldarn looked fiercely at him, as if he had asked him the worst possible question in the universe.

"My problem?" He breezed angrily and Caleb had to admit that Aldarn could look rather intimidating. The lumps on his head started to stand up straight, giving him a menacing look and he bared his teeth like a wild animal. A couple of months ago he would have been genuinely intimidated by Aldarn, but know it looked rather funny.

…

She raised an eyebrow. Caleb was rather passive in this fight, even if he was looking enraged. She didn't get it. She could just feel that Caleb had changed, yet he didn't look like he had. How was it possible for a man to be so confusing. And then that voice she thought she'd heard. Calling him a pussy. Was that a telepathic voice or was he berating himself? But why did she have the feeling that she recognized the voice?

She shot the others a short glance, indicating that she was rather bored and wanted to return. Both Irma and Hay Lin returned her gaze, but Cornelia frowned at her and shook her head slightly. Of course she wouldn't want to go. She loved these sort of things. A smirk crawled on her lips. She dared to bet that Cornelia was only wishing that the two would be fighting over her, instead of this leader stuff. Boy, was she glad she was never interested in that.

"My father died last night and dozens of villagers were killed."

Okay, she totally did not see this coming. Okay, she knew of that wicked and totally disgusting attack on the village but she didn't know that Aketon had died. Truth be told, she didn't really care, but it did explain to why Aldarn was suddenly developing leader characteristics. And to why he was so angry. He was obviously blaming Caleb.

"Your…Your father?"

Caleb's face was full of surprise…And did she just notice a strike of anger? This was probably the first time she saw him showing so much emotion since Will's death. He had been rather distant and this sudden show of emotion was rather pleasant to see.

"Yes Caleb. My father. Those wolves…Shapeshifters…Whatever these monsters were, killed him. They cut him through his chest." Aldarn bellowed angered.

Caleb had dropped his hand and Taranee could clearly see his already black eye. Yet Caleb didn't take much notice of it as he gritted his teeth. He bowed his head in some sort of regret, though Taranee wasn't sure if it was real or just acting.

"It's your fault."

Taranee sighed. Boys were childish. Aldarn was blaming Caleb for something no one had a grip on, yet she doubted he knew that. Caleb didn't face Aldarn and Taranee was sure she could hear a voice talking to him, but it was so faint and it faded in and out so many times that she could not understand what was said. She even started to wonder if Caleb was hearing that voice. Maybe she was just hallucinating. She had been sleeping badly for a long time, so that voice could pretty much be a delusion from her side. She seriously needed some sleep.

"It were shapeshifters."

Her attention was drawn to Caleb and she could see how everyone else was looking surprised at him. Aldarn's anger was weakening a bit and she felt how Cornelia's curiosity rose. O he did gather some information during his undercover mission.

"What?"

Aldarn's voice sounded broken. Was he suppressing his tears?

"During my undercover mission, I went to inspect the villages of the west." Caleb said, his voice sounding grave. "I picked up a rumor of monsters and I thought it was better to check it out first, before we have the rebellion panicking about that as well."

"And?" Irma asked, sounding impatient, yet curious. "What did you find?"

Caleb shrugged.

"Not much." He said. "The villagers of terrified of certain people of which they don't dare to speak. They didn't even know where they lived. But they told me that they were shapeshifters who only came when they wanted to kill."

He stopped rather dramatically and looked all of them in the eyes. His gaze rested on Aldarn and Taranee felt a small shiver run over her spine. Why was she getting so many bad vibes?

"It seems a third party is infiltrating our war." He concluded.

Bile formed in Taranee's throat. A third party? A murderous, third party? They were having enough problems as it were, they so could not handle a third party. She saw the shocked looks on the faces of the other girls and even Aldarn seemed to be too surprised to say something. Her eyes wandered back to Caleb's face and she thought she saw a shadow of a smirk on his face but his eyes were dark. What was he thinking?

"Well that's fantastic." Irma said sarcastically. "First we k…"

Luckily she picked up Irma's line of thought or else she would have spilled their rather dark secret. Irma glared silently at her while she kept her hand before Irma's mouth. She only replied with a glare of her own. She really wished that Irma was smarter than this.

"We'll go to the west, checking if we can get some more information." Cornelia said, taking charge once again and hopefully covering up Irma's mistake.

A quick glance told her that Aldarn was still shocked about the news of an apparent third party while Caleb looked judgingly at them, as if he was suspecting something. Yet he did not ask further and nodded at Cornelia. He then gazed at Aldarn, who seemed to snap out of his stupor. Aldarn nodded and looked a little lost at Caleb. Why did Caleb renounce his position anyway? Aldarn was too young, too inexperienced. Did Caleb wish for the death of the rebellion?

"Don't tell the people Caleb told you this, it might interrupt his undercover mission."Aldarn getting an approving nod from Caleb. "And Caleb…Sorry for hitting you. I-I was rash and…"

Caleb smirked at him and something in that smirk made Taranee shiver. Something was wrong with Caleb, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Was he still on their side or what? She decided it was better to keep an eye on him without Cornelia knowing it. She would wave her concern away.

A small sigh escaped her. Cornelia was way too relaxed during this war. Will was always on edge and kept an eye on every possible thing that could go wrong, while Cornelia just waved it away as a dream or fantasy. Hay Lin's dream was the proof of that. No, it was better if Cornelia didn't know.

"Don't worry about it, my friend." Caleb said, his smirk still on his face. "I understand why you were angry."

Aldarn seemed to relax visibly and Caleb bowed his head to the Guardians.

"Ladies, it was a pleasure seeing you four again, but I have to go. My informant is waiting." He said calmly and walked out of the tent.

Taranee watched him go. She thought she saw something black coming from Caleb, a small black fire or something like that. But as soon as she'd seen it, as soon as it disappeared. It was probably her imagination, but that would not stop her from following him whenever she got the chance.

"Girls, I think it's better if we go as well. We need to check the western cities before leaving."

She felt herself nod and followed Cornelia. There was this strange feeling lingering throughout Meridian and it gave her a cold feeling. Perhaps Hay Lin was right and was Will's ghost haunting them. She smirked at the silly thought as she squinted her eyes from the sudden sunlight that had found its way through the dark clouds. Ghosts were just a myth, a fairytale.

…

There she was, silently waiting by the now destroyed forge of Aketon. Her eyes swept over the new groups of guards that had entered the city. So Phobos still held some power over his men. A smirk grew on her lips as she saw the guards shiver as they walked past her. They didn't dare to ask her who she was, showing that they weren't as stupid as they looked.

Another group of guards rounded the corner, leaving her rather alone near the pile of rubble when she felt four energy signals taking the sky. She noted the strange feeling their energy gave her and her eyes looked from beneath the hood at her friends, who were now flying over the half-destroyed village. Villagers were still cheering for them, but she wondered how long that would take before the Guardians would receive hayforks and tomatoes instead of flowers and praises.

She noticed another energy level nearing her and she looked to see Caleb walked briskly at her, his right eye being black from a punch Aldarn had given him. He looked rather sour at her and she only felt her smirk grow. How funny it was that Caleb didn't see how deep he had fallen into darkness.

"Aketon? Really Will? If you'd ripped him apart like a wolf I could have told him that it were the Ghost wolves of Ankh." He said angrily, making her snicker.

How sad it was that his intelligence was shortening him. But she wasn't complaining. If he were any smarter he would have never joined her.

"Phobos already informed Cornelia, so the Guardians would either think you were lying or they would see that you were no valuable source of information. Besides, giving them a bit of the truth will not harm us. Elyon keeps the castle protected from their sight, so relax." She told him, her voice holding the mirth she was feeling.

"But Aketon?" Caleb countered, still sounding annoyed.

She shrugged while letting a small laugh escape.

"I figured that that would be the way to get Aldarn into his very own 'leader mode'." She said, seeing Caleb's face turning red.

"Why do you want him to be the leader of the rebellion anyway?" He asked, his voice growing louder and his eyes showing rage. "He's a foul traitor, a cockroach, a chicken. The rebellion will suffer…"

"For ever joining with the Guardians, exactly." She said, finishing his sentence.

Caleb's face became, if possible, even redder and she snickered as he forcefully grabbed her arm. She could easily break free, or better, hurt him, but she looked curiously at his enraged emerald eyes, silently taunting him to hurt her.

"They are innocent." He muttered, his grip already weakening.

Her eyes darkened yet her smirk remained. She pulled him closer, intending to break his very last hope.

"Are they now?" She whispered falsely in his ear. "They are still following the Guardians. Aldarn would bow for Cornelia. And talking about him, did he not just proof to you how much you really mean to him? How he showed the rebellion how easy it is to betray you?"

His grip loosened completely and he looked lost at the ground. She looked at him and finally managed to break his last defense against her. She never met such a stubborn person, if one did not count Cornelia. Even Cedric broke easier.

"Then why did you give him the leadership?"

His voice sounded so broken and childish. If she wasn't evil she would truly feel sorry for him, but in a way this was his own fault. If he hadn't trusted Aldarn he would never have been betrayed. Yet he needed to learn the same lesson she had learned from her friends.

"Despite his obvious lack of care for you, he knows that you still hold the loyalty of the majority of the rebellion." She said with a grin. "So he'll listen to your... 'advice'. And I see he can pack a punch."

The last sentence was meant as sarcasm and Caleb looked at her, with his lost, puppy dog green eyes. He seemed so hopeless, so lost. Luckily for him, she was here. She let her hand go through his shaggy brown hair before it rested on his black eye. She caressed it slowly and then patted him on the cheek, making him hiss in pain.

"Let that be a lesson Caleb. There are only a few you can truly trust and I sincerely hope you will not betray my trust." She said.

With that she teletransported both of them back home. There were still 8 months before the next part of her plan could work, so she had all the time to get her training back on the rails, while finally stopping the Guardians from using the portals whenever they pleased.

_**[A/N] FINALLY! To be very honest with you guys, I never planned this chapter. I wanted to continue with what is now the next chapter, but I found I had only the red line of that chapter…or better said, I had the ending. No start or mid… Terrible! That's when this chapter crept up and I tell you this. I truly regret that I didn't kill Aldarn as well…His pov is so annoying to write!**_

_**Anyway, I hope you liked it cause I'm not doing this chapter again!**_

_**Also, I've written a small side-story of this one, called "Punishment". It's a bit in the Valentine's Day mood, so if you want to see Caleb suffer, go ahead and read it. :P**_

_**REVIEW!**_


	10. Chapter 9 Hearts

**Chapter 9 Hearts**

She yawned softly as her tired eyes went over the breakfast table. She noted that, instead of the casual bread and eggs, there were more exotic kinds of food on the table like chicken, fresh fruits and even fish. She raised her eyebrow at Miranda, who had been gawking the food with the same surprise. Caleb nor Cedric had given the food a decent glance. Instead the two of them glared at each other when they entered and just started to eat, not even noticing what they were eating.

She sat down and some maids placed some chicken and fruit on her plate when Will came walking in. She was wearing her usual smirk, while her dark brown eyes twinkled maliciously. Elyon noted surprised that Will decided to wear something decent today. Instead of her rather short top with slim fitting black pants she was wearing a shirt with just one sleeve and the belly was almost open except for a cross which ran over her stomach and which was accentuating her figure while brown trousers were loosely hanging on her hips. Her boots were chaotically strapped around her legs. She greeted them as usual with a sarcastic bow of her head.

"Good morning." She said nonchalantly.

Elyon murmured the greeting back while Cedric completely ignored the greeting. Miranda and Caleb both bowed their heads as well, muttering a bit too respectful a greeting to Will. The maids quickly pulled Will's chair back and helped her to some food, while Will's eyes never left the four of them. Elyon knew that look. What was she planning this time?

"I think that we'd better skip training today."

There it was. Elyon rolled her eyes while both Caleb and Cedric stopped their usual glare wars and looked annoyed at Will. Truth be told, they were advancing in skills. She could 1v1 Cedric, just like Miranda and Will could just take him down. And from what Elyon heard, Will was also greatly advancing in her sword fighting training with Caleb. So it was no real surprise that she'd cancel training, though Elyon was curious to why she cancelled it this time.

"And what would be your reason to cancel it this time, my lady?" Cedric sneered.

Elyon rolled her eyes. Another name-calling fest between Will and Cedric. She really did not know what was fun about it and frankly, she did not care either. If the two of them wanted o get each other on edge than they could jump from a bridge for all she cared.

"Well, seeing that today is a rather special day, I was thinking of giving us a day off." Will replied slyly.

Elyon didn't even bother to ask what she was trying to say and focused on her food. The chicken was smelling delicious and the fruits, which she still could not properly recognize, looked delicious as well. If Will cancelled training she had to think of another way to entertain herself for the day.

"And what is so special about this particular day?" She heard Miranda asked.

Will's snicker was almost ruining her appetite and Elyon pricked dreamily in her fruit, juice seeping out it every time she stabbed it with her fork.

"My my. So even you are forgetting this joyous day." Will replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "And to think that you, of all of us, spent the most time with Elyon."

She could just feel Will trying to pull her into the conversation, but she held her tongue. Will usually loved to play these little mind games, only to show them who truly rules here and she was not in the mood for another defeat. Miranda, however, couldn't resist to bite and replied a little hotheaded.

"Would you stop your games?" She hissed annoyed. "Just tell us what day it is."

The dangerous sound of something being thrown whizzed through the room, followed by the sound of a knife hitting wood. Miranda went too far this time.

Her eyes wandered to Miranda, seeing her looking rather taken aback from the knife that was still trembling in the chair, right next to her head. She snickered softly before her eyes ventured to Will. Will was just smirking, not showing any sign of her being angered. That was perhaps one of the scariest features of her, you never knew if she was angry. Her face always held that smirk and her eyes always held the darkness.

She gulped softly when Will's eyes suddenly found hers, the mirth swimming in the mocha dark pools with which she was holding her gaze.

"Happy birthday, Elyon."

Elyon looked strangely at Will, who's smirk was almost friendly. Happy birthday? Was it really her birthday already? She smiled a bit empty at Will, while her other companions congratulated her as well, more out of courtesy than anything else. Will had more plans if she was cancelling training than just celebrating her birthday.

Will didn't seem to be surprised by her obvious lack of care considering her own birthday and kept smiling at her, giving Elyon the impression that Will had something planned for her.

"How about I take you back to Earth, to celebrate your joyous 18th birthday?"

There it was. She was just using her birthday as an excuse to go to Earth. Elyon wasn't so sure if going to Earth was what she really wanted. She'd rather went to one of the villages and got drunk and perhaps find a guy for the night and who would leave without a head tomorrow morning, but the way Will was looking at her made her quickly rethink about those things.

"I would love to." She said, faking a sweet smile at Will. "But then let it just be the two of us, okay?"

She expected some complaints from Caleb, Cedric and Miranda, but before any of them could even open their mouths Will nodded.

"Of course. An Earth girl's night out." She said, her tone implying that whoever dared to object would see how well her sword and magic training was going.

Cedric put his nose in the air, muttering something about silly girls while Caleb was coarsely pricking in his chicken. Miranda just shrugged and told her to have some safe fun before continuing with her own breakfast.

None of them spoke a word during their meal and when the maids came to clean the table, Caleb and Cedric walked to the courtyard, undoubtedly to fight once again while Miranda took off to the library. Elyon calmly looked at Will, who was gesturing her, with mock courtesy, to open a portal.

She swallowed softly. It had been months since she made her last portal and back she didn't even know she did it. And besides, she had been closing the portals rather than opening them but she did not wanted to give Will that victory as well.

She closed her eyes and strongly willed a portal to open and she wished it to open in her old room on Earth, being the first place she thought off. She waved her hand in front of her and felt her magic tingling. Her fingers seemed to go through something that almost felt like water and the sound of crackling lightning made her snap her eyes open, afraid that Will was getting impatient. Instead a crackling blue portal hang in front of her and she let a small sigh escape. For a second she thought she had blown it.

A cold hand touched her shoulder and she looked to see Will grinning appreciatively at her. She then looked back at the portal she made. Without a second thought she stepped through it, leaving her true home world behind for a world filled with traitors and liars in which she grew up. The portal crackled once more and Will stepped through as if she was walking through a door. Elyon looked curiously around, wondering how much had changed since she left and only noted that her room was slightly more disheveled than what she could remember. There was a thick layer of dust and her mirror was broken. She heard Will snicker behind her.

"Your old room. Cute." She remarked sarcastically.

Elyon only rolled her eyes before turning to Will. She knew there was no chance of winning an argument, so she could only try and figure Will's true intentions.

"Why are we here?" She said softly, yet loud enough to be heard over the low buzzing sound of the portal.

Will merely shrugged, her eyes glistening with mischief.

"I thought you could use a party and I don't believe that Cedric or Caleb are true party people." She countered.

Elyon raised an eyebrow. Will never seemed to be a real party person herself. And besides, if she would show her face the Guardians would most likely try and find her and wouldn't that endanger their revenge?

Will kept her mischievous smile and Elyon sighed. There was no way that she would get any more information from Will.

"Thank you, I guess." She said slowly.

"And seeing that it's your birthday, you may tell where you want to lunch." Will continued.

Elyon looked strangely at Will. How was Will planning to pay for lunch if she had been 'dead' for over ten months? Unless she would go for the less than favorable action of robbing or killing their host. Yet Will gave her a feeling of reassurance and she shrugged lazily, saying the first restaurant that came to her mind.

"How about the Silver Dragon?"

She immediately regretted to have mentioned the place. It had been the Guardians H.Q. for a long time and Elyon could see how Will's eyes attained new levels of darkness. Even her smirk fell temporarily and Elyon felt how Will's magical aura started to pulse. Elyon was contemplating if it was safe to jump through the portal and hope Will wouldn't follow when suddenly Will's composure returned to normal. Her smirk returned yet her eyes kept the darkness.

"An excellent idea." She said, her voice filled with mirth.

Was she thinking that she had mentioned the place to challenge her or was this part of her plan? She kept staring at Will as the latter glamoured her face. That wasn't a bad idea and she could at least wander through the town without getting any unwanted attention.

After she glamoured herself, she followed Will downstairs, but before they left her house Will stopped and turned around.

"I have some business to attend to, so I'm afraid you'll have to wander around town yourself." She said, grinning as usual.

Elyon wasn't really used to the longer brown hair she fancied or the slight changes to her face. She grinned back herself.

"I think I'm old enough to wander Heatherfield without a babysitter, don't you think?" She said sweetly.

Will snickered softly and patted her on her shoulder, allowing Elyon to feel the strange cold Will spread once more.

"I'll see you at the Dragon around noon, okay?" She said, her voice holding a snicker. "Oh and Elyon, don't exaggerate."

With that Will opened the door and walked out. Elyon could only stare after her as she watched Will walking towards downtown Heatherfield. What was she supposed to do now?

…

People would say she was lucky. She would merely scoff at such fools. Luck was simply a certain circumstance when preparation meets opportunity. But she wouldn't deny that she'd been planning this out ever since day one.

In the distance she saw some kids, already dressed up like a mummy or a pumpkin, running around and playing their little games.

'Oh Elyon.' She thought, her smile growing bigger. 'How ironic it is for you to be born on Halloween. But it does help my plans tremendously.'

She pushed a pluck of her now brown hair out of her face and turned a corner. She immediately saw that she had entered the less than favorable neighbourhood of Heatherfield. Garbage lay forgotten on the streets and a constant scent of alcohol and drugs hang in the air. Small gangs were standing together and eyed her suspiciously as she walked by.

In the past she used to avoid this place. It was dark and it never gave her a good feeling. Now she merely laughed at the pathetic attempts of being 'bad' of the many people who lived here in this rat hole.

"Are we lost, princess?"

A group of five men surrounded her, the biggest and ugliest of them having the balls to speak to her. She noticed the knives and guns the men were wearing and she smirked a bit before looking directly into the man's eyes. She could see him looked surprised at her, probably not thinking she would dare to look at his face. She could understand why. Cedric's snake form looked more beautiful than that man's face and that said a lot.

"I am, as a matter of fact." She said, her voice sickly sweet and innocent. This was going to be fun. "Could you, perhaps, help me out?"

The man gurgled a laugh and Will could smell the sickly scent of alcohol hanging heavy in his breath. This guy was either constantly drunk, or he thought it was normal to eat breakfast with a cheap brand of beer. She grimaced a bit before she recomposed herself to her usual smirk.

"But my dear, why do you want to leave so soon?" He said, pathetic seductiveness hiding in his voice.

Great, he was planning to rape her. Oh well, she needed some exercise anyway.

She shook her head, smiling sweetly at the man.

"Oh no. You see, I'm looking for a tattoo shop here and I thought you knew where I could find one, seeing that you've got all of those impressing tattoos over your body." She sweet-talked.

"You haven't seen the best ones." He said, wriggling his eyebrows in a stupid manner.

He then resumed laughing, his men quickly following suit. Will rolled her eyes. She wasn't going to get any information from this guy. She shrugged, keeping her innocent façade.

"Oh well. I'll try and find it myself then." She said, not wanting to get the man starting to boast of his prized possession. "Goodbye."

She made amends to move away, knowing the fool would touch her. She hadn't even taken a step before the man's hand clamped around her arm. He pulled her arm slightly up, probably trying to hurt her and he looked almost threateningly at her.

"Why leave so soon, my darling?" He said, again breathing the toxic fumes of alcohol over her. "We are not yet finished."

She could of course, kill him now, but toying with him and his guys was so much more fun. She widened her eyes, hoping she still could act scared, seeing as it had been a long time since she last felt fear.

"Pl-Please sir. I just want to go." She stammered, silently applauding herself for her acting.

Cedric wouldn't have done it any better and she smirked inside as the man smirked evilly at her. So he was falling for it.

She felt how he tightened his grip as she weakly started to try and wriggle herself loose. The man laughed louder and by now she was getting tired of her little game. Besides, now the fun part was coming. She stopped her girlish wriggling and looked darkly at the man, making him instantly stop his laughing. He was probably feeling the cold she was spreading.

"Let me go you jackass or I'll punch a hole in your stomach." She said darkly, grinning at the man's sudden shock that crossed his ugly face.

His grip only became stronger and he laughed again, his other hand patting her hair. Oh, he was going to die.

"That's funny little girl. You almost had me the…"

She didn't bother to let him finish his sentence. With one pull she freed her arm and with her other she grabbed the man's hand with which he had been patting her. With one fell hit she broke his arm before charging her fist with lightning and punching his stomach, holding truth to her word.

The other men tried to help their leader at first, but they stopped when they saw her charging her fist. Two of the four remaining men fled while the other two grabbed for their guns, pointing them at her while shivering like mad. Will turned to see their pale faces and she casually shook the blood of her hand. She mockingly shook her head.

"Tss. And I even warned him." She said grinning.

"Stay back!" One of the men ordered.

She merely waved her hand, murmuring the one word that would stop these fools from trying to be heroic.

"Quintessence."

The two guns were pulled out of their hands and she caught one of the two, pointing it at one of the men. The other ran off like mad, yelling that she was a demon. She rolled her eyes before focusing on the man before her. He had already wet himself and was shaking like a leaf. Men. All were weak creatures.

"Now, seeing that your boss had some trouble formulating a correct sentence." She said, again taking the sickly sweet tone. "Where can I find a tattoo shop?"

The man squeaked once or twice before he found his voice. He didn't seem to be wanting to hold her anymore and pointed to a place behind her.

"Straight ahead, second street left." He stammered clumsily. "You'll find it on your right."

She smiled at him and the man let himself sigh out of relief. She then watched how his eyes widened when she loaded the gun. He opened his mouth, probably trying to beg for his life, but she had already pulled the trigger. The man fell on the ground, blood seeping out of his skull and Will took a lazy step back. She threw the gun next to the man and deglamoured her hand. She couldn't risk it to have Tom Lair find her fingerprints on the gun. She couldn't let them know she was still alive, at least…Not yet.

She put her hands in her pockets and strolled leisurely through the downtown streets of Heatherfield. Those who had seen her killing the two men didn't dare to come at her and others were easily scared away when they felt her aura.

She found the tattoo shop with ease and looked at the shady place. One of the letters hang loosely next to the others and she could barely see through the window which was full of templates of several tattoos. She smirked as her eyes found one that interested her. Her hand went unconsciously over her scar on her stomach. What better way to mask it then to tattoo it? She placed her hand on the door and grinned to herself.

She was a little short on cash as well, but that would soon be solved.

…

"Cornelia! Mommy told me that you should take me out tonight for trick-or-treating!"

She angrily slammed the door of her closet and looked at the fourteen year old pest that was staring at her in a little devil outfit. It wasn't even noon and she was already parading around in her costume. She frowned at her little sister.

"Why? Aren't you old enough to do so with friends?" She sneered back. "Or better, aren't you too old for this nonsense?"

Lillian's face fell a bit before returning to the stubborn look she fancied whenever she wanted a fight with Cornelia.

"Mommy says it's too dangerous and I like candy!" She countered and Cornelia felt herself sigh.

How was it possible that her little sister resembled Irma that much?

She put her nose in the air and turned her back to her sister. She had better things to do than to entertain the little toad. There was a party at Alchemy's and she had been preparing it for a long time. She sighed in annoyance as she thought of her spare time. The last eight months only two portals had opened, which also had mysteriously closed the moment after they used them to get back to Earth. So to say that she was suffering of sexual stress was a heavy understatement. She couldn't search for Elyon, she had no Phobos while her friends had their boyfriends and there was no news. So yeah, she was on edge and totally not in the mood to go trick-or-treating with her little brat of a sister. She needed this party and she definitely need to get drunk.

"No, I've got a party at Alchemy's and…"

"You'll go there once you've taken your sister out trick-or-treating." Her mother finished, entering her room as well.

She stared at her mother with pure hate. Did this woman understand what she was doing? This was pure torture. Her mother didn't seem to be intimidated by her stare and only glared back.

"Mom. I'm 18 now. You cannot order me around anymore." She said angered, knowing her argument was childish.

"I don't care, young lady." Her mother countered. "As long as you live here you will follow my rules and you will obey me without question. Powers or not."

With that her mother walked away and Cornelia ended up glaring at her little sister, who was smirking proudly of herself. Napoleon entered, loudly meowing and he jumped on her bed. Her sister waved sneakily at her before leaving her room. Cornelia sighed heavily and let herself fall on her bed. How could this day get any worse?

"Pinky, you need to hide me. Take me with you, I beg of you."

Of course. She forgot that the talking fur ball had a phobia for this day. She rolled her eyes and looked at Napoleon, who was standing and looking scared around.

"Now you're just exaggerating." She said annoyed. "There are no enemies and no one knows of our little secret."

Napoleon swayed his tail and sat down, licking his paw in fear and looking up at every little sound.

"You don't feel it? I'm tellin' ya doll, tonight is going to be a dark night." He said, fear laced in his voice.

Cornelia sighed again and grabbed the cat, caressing his back until he finally gave in and started to purr.

"If you're scared you can sleep in my room tonight. No one will find you and no one will hurt you." She said reassuringly. "But you should really stop worrying. There is no danger, you're just imagining it."

"Watch my *purr* *purr* words doll." Napoleon warned.

She rolled her eyes again and pushed him out of her room. He could enter after she left and no sooner. She walked back to her closet, searching for an outfit which she would wear tonight when her cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey Cornelia!" Alchemy's voice rang out. "You'll never guess what just happened to me!"

Cornelia sighed. Alchemy would probably tell her about a new outfit she found. As if she cared. She just wanted the party and the drinks.

"What?" She asked, trying to sound enthusiastic.

Suddenly Alchemy voice became hushed and Cornelia could faintly hear another voice speaking on the other side of the phone.

"Why not?" She heard Alchemy say.

The other person mumbled something in return and suddenly Alchemy's voice rang clearly through the phone.

"Uhm…Dad said that he and mom would be out tonight, which means we can party till late!"

Somewhere, Cornelia had to nagging feeling that Alchemy was lying, but this was certainly good news. This meant a long, long party.

"That's great Al!" She said, a smile gracing her face. "But I won't be there from the start."

"How come?" Alchemy's worried voice rang.

"I have to go trick-or-treating with my little sister." She replied a little defeated.

She heard Alchemy's merciless snicker and she sighed again. Her mother just had to go out tonight and she just had to force Lillian on her instead of asking someone else.

"Bummer. Well, see ya when I'll see ya." She said before hanging up.

Cornelia pushed her phone off and threw it carelessly on her bed. Not long after she let herself fall on her bed as well. Life was unfair to her with no reason. Lillian's voice rang out from somewhere in the house and Cornelia suppressed the feelings of anger and annoyance. It wasn't her little sister's fault that things were going bad. It was all Elyon's fault anyway.

…

"Why couldn't I tell her?"

Even though she smiled at Alchemy, Elyon was silently berating herself. What had she done? Where did the sudden urge of showing herself to Alchemy come from? Alchemy betrayed her just by hanging around with Cornelia and yet she wanted to say hi one more time. But she should have known that Alchemy would call Cornelia. The two of them were once her best friends. Until both betrayed her. Oh man, what would Will say if she found out about this?

"I…I didn't want you to spoil the surprise." She said, her smile being a bit mischievous.

Alchemy lit up and nodded. Her smile still held something warm but Elyon did no longer felt the compassion and love she felt for Alchemy long ago. Perhaps Will had contaminated her too much, but Elyon only saw Alchemy as another person.

Alchemy suddenly gasped and her eyes widened immensely. Elyon smirked as Alchemy started jumping up and down.

"I just realized…It's your B-day!" She practically yelled and rushed to hug her.

Elyon accepted the hug, but couldn't help but feel awkward. She wasn't used to this kind of interaction and she didn't like it. She quickly broke the hug but Alchemy kept smiling.

"You HAVE to come to my party tonight!" She said insistently. "You would be like my guest of honor! And the girls would love it to see you! They've been so down since your departure!"

Elyon snorted. Sure they were upset. Upset that they had to wait to 'rule' the Metaworld. She stared coldly at Alchemy's eyes, yet Alchemy didn't seem to notice her coldness. A strange idea came to her. How fun would it be to flaunt in front of the Guardians while they couldn't do a thing? While they could only watch? A smirk graced her lips and she nodded at Alchemy.

"Sure Al. I would love to come." She said grinning.

Alchemy squealed happily and once again hugged her, though this one was a short one. She released Elyon and started walking away, waving at her.

"Great! Party starts at 8! Don't forget to come in a costume!" She said happily.

Elyon waved at her until Alchemy left her eyesight and she let her hand drop. The clocks of the church started to ring and she looked at the clock of a nearby house. 12 o'clock already? She had to get to the Silver Dragon to meet Will.

She started walking with a rather quick pace, glamouring herself as she went. She couldn't risk showing herself in front of Hay Lin and Yan Lin, now could she? She arrived at the restaurant, but she couldn't see Will anywhere. Yan Lin approached her and Elyon saw the suspicious look on the old woman's wrinkled face.

"Welcome to the Silver Dragon, how may I help you?" She asked politely, though her eyes kept shifting suspiciously over Elyon.

Elyon bowed her head in respect for the old lady and grinned at her.

"I would like a table for two, please." She replied, holding the same courtesy.

Yan Lin raised her eyebrow.

"A table for two, as you wish." She said, but Elyon did not like the suspicious look on her face.

She led her to a table and Elyon sat down, thanking Yan Lin as she brought the menus. She had barely flipped the first page when she heard someone entering. She looked up to see Will walking in, a grin on her face. Elyon waved discreetly at her and Will came slowly at her. Elyon noted that there were black spots visible on her stomach and that her skin was irritated around it. Elyon's gaze went temporarily to Yan Lin, who seemed to have a small heart attack as Will passed her, nodding in greeting.

Will sat down, oblivious to Yan Lin's sudden gasp for air and took a menu, flipping through it.

"What's wrong with your stomach?"

Her question had left her mouth before she knew it and she saw Will looking down before grinning at her.

"I've gotten myself a fancy tattoo." She said, more jokingly than something else.

Elyon knew Will despised her scar. She always said it reminded her why she was training so hard, but it also reminded her of them and that was the small thorn she hated.

She raised an eyebrow.

"A tattoo? In downtown Heatherfield?" She asked, knowing about the amount of thugs that lived there.

Will merely shrugged as Yan Lin came to take their order. Right after Yan Lin left Will looked at her, her eyes shining with the malicious intent Elyon so often saw before they went on one of their excursions.

"Yeah, a nice dragon tattoo that is wrapped around my waist." She said nonchalantly. "And yes, I was in downtown Heatherfield."

"Nothing happened?" Elyon said, knowing Will would have probably killed the tattoo shop owner, maybe even more.

"I walked into some thugs on my way." Will said, her voice light and full of humor. "Such a nice fellows. Their boss was a bit stupid though… But we don't have to worry about that anymore."

Elyon nodded, knowing full well that Will had been toying with those thugs. She even felt some pity for them, knowing how Will's games often ended. She swallowed when Will looked piercingly at her.

"So…What have you done till now?"

Oh boy…How was she going to safe herself now?

…

Yan Lin didn't like it. She didn't like it one bit. Those two girls who had entered her restaurant. Something was off about them. To a laymen's eye, the two girls looked normal. Though the brown haired girl was a bit eccentrically dressed, both seemed like nice girls. But The moment the first girl, whose orange blond hair was tied in a pigtail, entered, Yan Lin felt a dark aura enveloping her. It was a little suffocating and the air was almost screaming danger, yet the girl applied the terms of courtesy so well that Yan Lin had no reason to kick the girl out. But when the second one entered, she had to grasp for her heart. The scent of blood was thick around the girl and Yan Lin could almost physically touch the evil aura the girl was spreading.

Now, after calming down of her sudden stroke, she rushed to the kitchen and focuses on the girls' conversation, while sometimes looking in their direction. They were talking so leisurely of a kill that Yan Lin almost feared that they were creatures from a different planet.

"I met Al." The girl with the ponytail said a bit uncomfortable.

It was evident to Yan Lin that the eccentric dressed girl was the one who was in charge. The other girl looked a bit scared at the brown haired girl while her son brought their food. The brown haired girl did not react as the pony tailed girl thought she would and started on her food, her eyes still on her companion.

"And…She invited me for a party tonight." The girl continued, slightly apprehensive of her 'friend'.

The brown haired girl shrugged while swallowing a big bite of her food. She slowly drank something before she folded her hands.

"Will they come?" She asked, her voice holding a dangerous edge.

The other girl nodded slightly, while eating some of her food.

"All but C. She has to go trick-or-treating." The girl said.

The brown haired girl grinned and Yan Lin thought for a second that she recognized Nerissa's look in the girl's eyes, yet her shadow betrayed that she was just a normal girl. Who was this girl?

"Well…All I can say is I hope you'll have fun." She said, her voice carrying mischief in it. "But let's stroll around the town together until your party, okay?"

Yan Lin saw the other girl nod, but nothing more. A sudden order came in and she had to work quickly, making too much noise for her old ears to hear the two girls talk. When she was done cooking she walked out, seeing that both girls were done with their food and wanting to pay. Truth be told, Yan Lin thought they would not pay, but just rob her place. Instead these two behaved so well that they just dissolved in the public.

The brown haired girl took a look at the receipt and grabbed in her pocket, leaving several coins and bills behind. The pony tailed girl was already making attempts to walk away and Yan Lin noticed that neither were wearing coats, which was strange seeing that it was a cold autumn.

She went to pick up the money, when she nearly bumped into the brown haired girl. Something told her it was on purpose and when she looked up to apologize, even if her body told her to run, she stood still. Her breath was caught in her throat and her eyes were glued to a pair of dark hazel brown eyes she thought she recognized. But there was something dark and sinister swimming those liquid pools of mahogany that made Yan Lin doubt. It couldn't be true anyway, Will died months ago.

They stood still for several minutes, Yan Lin getting more and more the feeling that this was surely Will she was looking at instead of a total stranger when the sound of someone roughly descending the stairs was heard. The girl broke the eye contact to search for the source of the sound and with that, Yan Lin's suspicion disappeared. This girl, even if her eyes resembled her so much, could not be Will. That was just impossible. She too turned her head and saw her granddaughter nearly falling of the stairs with a purple fabric in her hands.

"Grandma!" She yelled, gaining the attention of half the restaurant. "Can you help me with my costume! Alchemy says hers is going to outdo mi…"

Yan Lin saw how Hay Lin stopped in her sentence and how she looked mesmerized at the brown haired girl. She also noticed a sudden cold creeping in and how the darkness around said girl was increasing. Yet her facial expression did not betray a thing. She just stood there, smirking, before giving both of them a nod and walking after her companion, who had left the door ajar. Perhaps it was just the autumn cold entering the building that made it so cold.

Once the girl closed the door, Hay Lin walked to her.

"Grandma…Do you know that girl?" She asked, her voice holding a lot of doubt and perhaps a bit of fear, making Yan Lin wonder if Will truly died by a Lurden attack or not. But it was not her place to question her granddaughter.

She sighed and shook her head.

"No." She said. "No, I do not."

…

She shuddered in the cold evening air. It was strangely cold for Halloween, but she could not argue with the warm embrace of her boyfriend's gorilla arms. How Will could so easily lose such a fantastic man was a mystery to her, but now he was hers.

The party had already started. The music was booming and audible outside the house. The lights managed to give a light show outside which made the pumpkins fade away. She walked up to the door and knocked as hard as she could, hoping Alchemy would hear her. Normally she would parade through the door, but Alchemy's parents had once told her that they did not allow such a behaviour in their house and that they would show her the door next time she tried such a stunt. That's why it was a mystery to Irma how Alchemy had managed to throw a party like this.

After the seventh knock the door finally swung open and Irma looked in an enthusiastic looking Alchemy, who was dressed like Catwoman. Her smile fell when her eyes fell on her. Was she expecting someone else?

"Irma! Matt!" Alchemy shouted. "Glad you came!"

Irma smiled back at Alchemy.

"Yeah!" She yelled back. "Are you expecting someone?"

Alchemy was smiling happily.

"Yeah!" She yelled. "But I can't tell! You'll see later tonight!"

Before Irma could 'interrogate' Alchemy, Taranee and Hay Lin showed up, both with their respected partners. Hay Lin was dressed in a puffy, purple dress, making her look kind of witchy while Eric was wearing his good old Jedi costume. Taranee was wearing a strange colorful poncho with a diadem with little pumpkins on it. Nigel was wearing an armor, with a dragon emblem on it.

"Nice, Jane and Tuk." Hay Lin commented with a grin.

"Says miss Plum and her bathrobe holder." Irma countered with a grin of her own.

Hay Lin countered with sticking out her tongue and Taranee just laughed. They all entered the already rather full house. Irma was enjoying herself greatly, either with drinking some beer and trying persuade Taranee into drinking some as well or with kissing her rocking boyfriend. If she wasn't doing one of these things, she was dancing to the beat of the music which was sometimes performed by Matt and his band.

When it was around ten she found Hay Lin again, who was jumping up and down to the beat while Eric was getting her some punch.

"Do you know when Corny will arrive?" She shouted loudly to her Asian friend.

"She called me!" Hay Lin yelled back. "She should be done with the trick-or-treating in about half an hour!"

Irma grinned as she took another gulp of beer.

"Too bad! I was enjoying myself big time!" She said, earning a grin from Hay Lin and a playful jab in her stomach.

Suddenly the music stopped and a lot of booing ensued, something in which Irma gladly participated. She looked at the makeshift stage and saw Alchemy getting up there, holding the mic and smiling like a drunken buffoon. Well, maybe she was drunk.

"People! I want to proudly announce that there is a birthday girl among us." She said, her voice heavy with alcohol.

Irma cheered happily with the crowd and she could see how someone was walking up the stage. Her eyes widened to the size of small platters as she checked twice if the alcohol wasn't hitting her. On the stage, wearing a beautiful, curve accentuating dress with bell shaped and cut sleeves, was standing none other than Elyon. The Elyon they'd been searching for all this time.

While many people started singing "Happy Birthday" Irma looked at Hay Lin, who was looking as stupefied as she was feeling. Not short after that, Taranee appeared next to them, looking shocked and angered at the same time.

"Isn't that…?" Hay Lin asked slowly, as if she wasn't sure to continue.

"Elyon? Sure is. I can't believe it either!" Taranee breezed angrily and for a second Irma was glad that it wasn't the alcohol that made her hallucinate. "How dare she show up while she'd been missing for months? Is she taunting us?"

"T, relax." Irma said, placing her hands on Taranee's shoulders. "Maybe she was kidnapped and she thought it was a good idea to show herself to us so we could safe her, ya know."

Taranee waved annoyed her breath away but nodded. It wasn't often that Irma had the better idea, but what could she say? Alcohol made her think clearer.

"Maybe, but we need to speak to her. And someone needs to call C." She said, way too sober for Irma's taste.

A mischievous grin appeared on her face and she looked almost pleadingly at Taranee, holding her hands in a praying position.

"Please. May I tell her the happy news? Oh please? Oh please? Oh please? Oh please?" She begged.

Taranee hadn't even nodded or she yelled from excitement. She was the one to tell Corny the big news. Oh she was going to be pissed!

She quickly ran outside, followed by both Matt and her friends and took her phone. She speed dialed Cornelia and within seconds she had the bossy blonde on the other side of the telephone line.

"Irma. Just give me some time! I'm coming in about twenty minutes!" Cornelia's annoyed voice said.

Irma grinned drunkenly.

"Corny, you never guess who's here." She said in a singsong voice.

"I don't believe I really care." Cornelia's cold reply came.

"Ah, that's cold ice queen." Irma retorted. "If you're this cold I won't tell you that Elyon is here."

A silence came from the other side before Cornelia's threatening voice reached her once more.

"If this is one of your silly jokes I swear you will end like Will." She threatened.

"Chill, girl." Irma said, her smirk still on her face. "Why would I lie about this? And besides…"

A groan was heard besides her and she looked alarmed aside, seeing Matt swaying dangerously and falling unconscious to the ground. Through the phone she could hear Cornelia crying out for Lillian.

"Matt!" She yelled concerned, suddenly feeling more sober than she had in hours.

…

He was scared and he would happily tell it to the world. Tonight was so cold and something sinister was hanging in the air, yet Cornelia didn't want to take him with her. She did not believe him and now all he could do was wait and hope nothing would happen. That he was just paranoia.

He looked up and stared at the moon of the slightly open window. He needed some fresh air or else he would have gone mad in a matter of seconds. Now he could watch the beautiful full moon hanging above the buildings of Heatherfield.

He buried his head once again in his paws, hoping to fall asleep and sleep through this horrible day without dying in the progress. He was barely asleep when a beautiful meow caught his ears. His head shot up and he saw a beautiful feline sitting right outside the window, staring at his with mysterious eyes. Her fur was black as the night itself but her ears had the curious color of red in them, something he'd never seen before.

He straightened himself and looked cockily at the cat. Boy was she a beauty or what. He slowly walked to the window and saw that the cat was making rather seducing movements, something that made his fur curl. This fine lady knew how to please men.

"Why hello purretty lady." He said seductively, his tail swishing behind him.

The fine lady cat rubbed her head against the window and made a wonderful meow that made his heart beat faster. She softly placed her paw against the window, trying to open it a little further and he would scold himself for not helping such a fine lady. He placed his paws on the window and despite he lagged his Regent strength he could create a big enough crack for his newfound female companion to enter the room.

The feline landed gracefully on the floor and her tail swished playfully behind her, her eyes shining with a strange light of victory. He jumped of the balcony as well and landed next to her, rubbing his head against her beautiful body. Too bad he was locked up in this room or he would have gotten her some fish from the tank in the living room.

"My dear, what brings you on this cold night?" He purred to her, knowing she would only meow in reply, but he couldn't help but set the mood.

The window closed with a loud bang, but he reckoned it was just the wind that had pulled it close. A cat-like snicker came from his feline companion and all of the sudden he felt a strong cold filling the room as well as a strong aura of darkness.

"Well, now that you're asking." The feline said, her voice as cold as ice. "I've come to collect something."

With that lightning enveloped the cat and in no time the cat had disappeared. Instead a woman he knew all too well was standing on the same spot. Her red hair seemed to move on an invisible breeze while her dark brown eyes were completely set on him. He swallowed as he slowly moved backwards, quickly feeling the wall and he shivered in fear. It wasn't possible. He'd heard Cornelia. She'd told him they'd killed Will. That she had bled to death in Metamoor. How was it possible that she was standing here, in front of him?

"Will! Doll! How've you been?" He said quickly, trying to keep his fear in check.

Will smiled at him and he swallowed. Whatever the girls had done to Will had to be monstrous, because there was nothing left of the old Will. The one who bought him for Cornelia.

"I've been fine, Napoleon." She said airily. "Never been better actually."

She advanced on him in a slow pace, completely ignoring the room around her. Napoleon jumped out of her grip just in time and sprinted to the other side of the room. He scratched the door in fear and desperation when he heard Will snicker.

"Oh poor Napoleon. Locked up in a room. Are you afraid someone will kill you?" She said, her voice sickly sweet and he could practically smell the danger.

"I-I-I don't have anything to do with this Will." He said scared as he turned around, only to see how Will grabbed him effortlessly at his throat.

He felt the abnormal strength in her grip and he struggled to free himself, scratching her with his front paws and hind legs, yet she did not give a yell. She did not release him. She even smiled at his attempts.

"Oh but Napoleon, you've got everything to do with this." She said, her eyes sparkling maliciously. "You see, things that are given will always return."

His eyes widened and he started to struggle even more. He could not let Will win. He couldn't give her the powers of Earth. If he did, Lillian would be in danger.

"Please. I only protect Lillian. You can't kill me. Not for your revenge on Cornelia." He said scared, almost gasping for air.

Will laughed coldly and Napoleon could feel the shivers run over his spine. What did Cornelia do? What did she create?

"I don't kill you to deliver a blow to dear old Cornelia." She said dangerously. "But you hold powers which I can and will use for the better. You're simply no longer suited for the power."

These words. They sounded so familiar, or at least the hidden message was clear. He knew these words and his fear temporarily diminished and he glared at his attacker.

"You are just like Nerissa. Power hungry and mad." He stated coldly and he felt how Will's grip increased.

She snickered again and he saw sparks of energy surrounding her while a crazy look was plastered on her face.

"No." She said softly. "I'm much better."

With that he felt a surge of electricity fueling him and he yelled out in pain before everything became black.

…

Nothing happened. She glared at the dead cat in her hand. Why had he been so scared? She felt nothing, no sudden rise in power, no warm feeling of entering power, nothing.

She breathed from frustration and she threw the damned cat at the ground. He was just one good storyteller, nothing more and she couldn't believe she had fallen for his trick. Maybe she had to do something else first before killing him.

She sighed in frustration and walked to the window. She could thrash the place but why would she? She wouldn't gain anything on that. She couldn't even be here to see Cornelia's shocked face.

She opened the window and looked one more time at the cat she once bought as a "cheer up" present for Cornelia. She then noticed how a green aura enveloped Napoleon. The same aura that enveloped Matt when he boosted his powers. She slowly moved forward and slowly reached out for the greenish aura. The moment she touched it, three other beams hit her from outside and she felt how a new power was trying to settle itself inside of her. How the power rushed through her veins, burning her from the inside and she had to bite her tongue not to scream out loud. When was the last time she felt such an agony?

She felt how the new power slowly intermingled with the power of the Heart of Kandrakar and how her heart was beating like mad. Her eyes blurred and she felt her butt hitting the floor while her heavy breathing echoed in the room. Slowly the burning sensation stopped and she could feel her muscles pulsing. She looked at her hands, finding a small aura around them. She was overflowing with power. Was this the difference of simply holding a heart and being one?

She shook the leftover haziness from her mind and got up, which went surprisingly easy considering through what pain she just went. She looked through the room and found a life-size mirror. She smirked. Cornelia was as vain as ever. She raised an eyebrow when she saw her own reflection.

There she was, standing in her old Guardian outfit and brimming with power. She huffed in annoyance and she forced herself to transform back. She couldn't remember having changed into it and she did not want it either. The moment she transformed back she again felt the agonizing pain, but she bit her tongue. She did not want to rely on her Guardian form, on Kandrakar. She had to overcome this herself or else she would keep depending on others and she had found out long ago that she could only depend on herself.

She breathed slowly and even though the pain was now holding on longer than before, it was weakening while she was still in her human form. She just had to adjust to it, nothing more.

Her eyes fell on the alarm clock next to Cornelia's bed. It was already a quarter to eleven. Not that she was thrilled to see Cornelia once more, but it was time for her to pick up Elyon. They've spent enough time on this planet and it was near midnight anyway. She rubbed her sore arms once more before calling on her magic to glamour herself. The pain that came with the glamour was fierce, but nothing she couldn't handle. She would adjust to this, no matter what.

…

Her breathing was irregular on the contrary to her little sister, who was breathing regular on the white hospital bed. She nearly got a heart attack when Lillian suddenly fainted in front of her. And to think she was worrying about not going to the party. She just hoped that the girls had managed to get a hold of Elyon.

Her eyes wandered over the sleeping form of her sister. The doctors had told her that she had a fainting spell, nothing to be worried about and her parents were now speaking with the doctors in question. Yet Cornelia had the nagging feeling that there was more going on than she knew and she hated it to be out of the loop.

Her phone started ringing and she quickly checked who it was. Taranee. She casted one concern look at her sister before walking out of the room, leaving the door ajar and picked up her phone.

"Yes?"

"Uhm…Cornelia…I've got some news…But I don't think you'll like it." Taranee's voice said cautiously through the phone.

Cornelia swallowed. What news could she have other than losing Elyon again?

"What is it?" She asked forcefully.

"Well…You see…We … Matt…" Taranee started before Cornelia heard a small fight ensuing over the background.

"Hey Corny, it's me." Irma's voice rang in alarm. "We've got major problems."

She rolled with her eyes. She knew that much.

"I know Irma, now if you could be so nice as to inform me to our problems."

"Well, Matt fainted around the same time as Lillian did, right?" Irma said. "And well, I stayed with him while T and Hey Hay went to get Elyon. Well, when they came to Elyon a chick showed up, almost suffocating Hay Lin and Taranee with her magical energy. Even Elyon seemed to have troubles breathing. And the non-magic folks nearly fainted. Anyway, within seconds they disappeared and well… We lost Elyon once again."

Cornelia let out a cry of frustration. She..They had been so close to grabbing Elyon. So close to end this senseless war once and for all, but she had to disappear once again. And that without even bothering to say hi to her, her best friend!

"But Hay Lin said she recognized the girl. She had eaten in the Silver Dragon during lunch." Irma continued. "So perhaps we can stake out and hope we'll meet her again."

She sighed annoyed and nodded, even if no one saw her. There was no other way, was there?

"Yeah, but anything else?" She continued, knowing there was more Irma wanted to tell.

"Yeah…About that." Irma said rather unsure. "I don't think you have to worry about someone going after your little sister again."

"Why?"

A silence on the other side of the line, when Irma's voice finally broke it.

"Matt woke up and told us he didn't feel any powers coursing through him. So we went to your house to check on Napoleon and well…We found him. Death."

She grabbed the doorpost with trembling hands. This was not possible. Who knew about this one day when someone could steal the Heart of Earth? Who had stolen her sister's powers?

"He was strangled and electrocuted." Irma said, her voice slightly quivering. "And…"

Cornelia didn't want to listen anymore. She was done hearing only bad news. They were now a powerhouse less and that would only end up being a problem for Phobos and her rule. Next to the fact that their potential third player, was a sly enemy who knew when to strike. She yelled once more out of frustration and felt tears run over cheeks out of frustration.

Suddenly she heard a dark snicker coming from her sister's room. She rushed in and looked frantically around, only seeing her little sister sleep and an open window. Her eyes then rested on something on the table next to her sister's bed. Five red roses lay there and Cornelia was sure they hadn't been there before. What was happening?

_**[A/N] Voila. I hope you guys are happy! I totally loved writing this episode! I mean, overpowering like hell! The Guardians lost a powerhouse and Will totally powered up! Also noticed that she was nearly raped twice? I mean, the thug somewhere in the beginning and then Napoleon… O.o Also, see how much Corny cares for her little sis? Cute huh? O…and yes, she is suffering from sexual stress if you know what I mean :P**_

_**REVIEW!**_


	11. Chapter 10 Dressing up

**Chapter 10 Dressing up**

She was tired. Dead beat even. She had been flying for three days nonstop, only because her wings needed to grow in. And because she had to learn how to handle three wings instead of two. She still wondered how the man could look at her and think: 'Yeah, three wings should fit her well.'

A gasp for air came from her lungs and she felt how she was descending. She had managed to grasp flying after day one, but she had refused to stop and go to sleep. She just wanted to return to her own place, her castle. She could see the castle in the distance and she now deliberately let herself descend. She didn't hold the power to move her wings too much. Her back was sore, her wings were sore and her head felt heavy.

Her feet touched the ground and for the first time since Halloween she allowed herself to transform to her human form. She let out a groan when the pain only increased in her already tired body, but she couldn't hold on any longer. Slowly she moved to the castle, her breathing slow and a bit raspy. Yet despite the pain she was proud. Proud of what had happened in the last few days.

_Flashback_

Again it had happened. Again she'd transformed in and out of her Guardian form, much to Cedric's amusement. And now it was just during lunch. Ever since she'd acquired her new powers, Will had found it to be a difficulty of controlling her magic. Ever so often she would transform into her Guardian form and it would only hurt her when she transformed back. Her magic had become quite unmanageable and it often happened that she randomly started fizzing with electricity or that she manipulated the energy of another element near her without knowing she did. It had become quite a nuisance during her training and now once again, she found only pain when she transformed to her human form. It were times like this that she'd wished that she wasn't the Heart of Kandrakar and Earth but that she was still holding the jewel. Perhaps then it wouldn't hurt so much and perhaps then she would have had some decent control.

She let herself fall on her bed, skipping Cedric's jolly training. She knew it was stupid. It was his training she needed the most at the moment. She had no control over her powers and was more or less a bigger danger to their plans than their enemies. But she couldn't be assed. Besides, Cedric kept telling her that it was her who was the problem and not her control. He had said that her control was perfect, but that her body wasn't up for the job.

The familiar rush of magic washed over her and she groaned in annoyance. There was the transformation again and she couldn't help but feel more at ease in this state. She felt in control while being transformed, even if she sometimes shot a random bolt of energy. At least now she had almost proper control of what she was doing, but she was also draped as Kandrakar's slave. And she was no longer one of their brainless followers.

As she prepared to transform herself back, she heard a gasp from behind. She forgot about her transformation and turned around, her eyes resting on her personal maid Lisa. Lisa was checking her out with surprise on her face and Will rolled her eyes. There would be coming a load of questions and new rumors would fill the castle now that Lisa knew about this.

"So…You really are a Guardian?" She stammered softly, clearly still in shock.

Will let herself sit on her bed, shaking her head slowly while her eyes were focused on Lisa.

"No. I was a Guardian." She said darkly, making sure no one would compare her to those traitors.

Lisa seemed to get the hint and nodded, bowing to apologize for her rudeness. Will nodded and transformed back, groaning in the progress. Lisa came closer and looked concerned at her, while Will tried to sit up straight. This pain was getting more and more annoying.

"Why did you transform back, ma'am?" Lisa asked, her eyes wide in confusion. "If transforming hurts you so much, wouldn't it be better if you just stayed in your transformed state?"

What she said was true, but that didn't mean that Will would listen. She'd rather die from the pain she felt every time she transformed back than to walk around like a Kandrakarian lapdog.

"Because those clothes mark me as a slave, Lisa." Will said calmly, her voice holding a bit of a quiver. "And do I look like a slave to you?"

Lisa shook her head feverishly, stammering apologies as quickly as she could. Will held up her hand, indicating that Lisa could stop. She then laid herself on her bed, leaving Lisa to do whatever she came here to do. A silence ruled her room before Lisa spoke up once more.

"Ma'am…If I may so bold?" She asked scared and doubtingly.

Will gave a tired sigh and waved her hand, indicating that Lisa could continue.

"Well…Why don't you go to the smith who made your Guardian clothes?"

Lisa wasn't even finished or Will shot up, her eyes wide in surprise and probably scaring Lisa with the sudden show of interest.

"What did you say?" She asked, her voice holding a sharp edge.

Lisa gulped and fiddled with the sack she was holding while looking at the ground, no longer having the courage to look up at her.

"I..There are stories that tell of an ancient smith who only makes armor for the pure of heart. And they say that the Oracle brings a future Guardian to that smith so that he could forge an outfit that would fit the Guardian when she takes the role." Lisa said quickly, not daring to look at Will.

Will was silent during this. True, she had read about this smith but she never knew he made the outfits for the Guardians as well. She always thought the Heart gave the Guardian her fitting outfit. This was certainly interesting news. The only thing that stung was the fact that Lisa had mentioned that a person needed to be pure of heart and Will could vouch for it that she no longer held a pure heart. Her eyes twinkled dangerously. Perhaps she could change said smith's mind about the question. If he could make her an armor or outfit that would truly show who she was, she could finally stay in her transformed form. She would no longer feel the pain of the magic coursing through her veins of her weak human body.

"Where does he live?" She asked, making Lisa look at her in surprise.

"He-He lives up north, in the mountains." She said, her voice sounding relieved. "Somewhere near Hartgard. The villagers there know exactly where he lives."

Well, at least she had a lead. She knew where Hartgard was and could easily teletransport to it. From there she would start her search. She was rather glad that her maid was a gossiping factory or she would have had some trouble with inquiring information. But because she stayed civil with her, Lisa unknowingly told her every bit of information there was to be found in the castle. She could hear about the gossips of the laundry women or the gardeners and the rumors that filled the castle and the villages around it. That was also how she found out about the new nickname the servants as well as the villagers outside the castle had fancied for her. Lisa had figured out what her full name was and now everyone was referring to her as the 'Warrior Queen' and only because her full name apparently meant warrior. But she did fancy it. It meant people were afraid of her, yet respected her to no ends. And Lisa seemed to be proud of herself, being allowed to say Will's name while so many thought they would be killed if they said it.

She had packed some food, a clean set of clothing and hid herself in a cloak, as to hide herself when she transformed without a warning, and teletransported to Hartgard, only telling Elyon where she went. The others would soon enough know where she went, Elyon had always been a blabbermouth.

She quickly noticed that Hartgard was packed with Phobos's guards. The rumor went that Phobos wanted an armor made by The Smith, yet he never managed to reach him. The guards were there to prevent The Smith from sneaking away, something the villagers found amusing seeing how The Smith never left his home.

As she entered the small village, she noticed how people looked confused at her. Children ran back to their mothers and men kept an eye on her. She sighed. She was rather used to people scaring away from her, she even liked it to see their scared faces, but sometimes it got boring. She didn't need to search for someone who could tell her where she could find The Smith, as the guards were neatly guarding the pass to The Smith. The only thing that annoyed her was that she could not go and kill the guards, for the sole reason that that would certainly get Phobos's attention and she'd rather stayed in the dark for a little longer.

Once again she felt her magic wash over her, but this time she allowed it. It was better to have complete control over her powers than to accidentally attract unwanted attention by blowing something up without her wanting it.

She sighed softly and focused on her magic. She felt how her limbs started to change and within seconds she'd managed to change into a harmless bird. She took off, silently noting that this time she didn't feel the pain of her magic coursing through her. It was probably because she was in her transformed state instead of her weaker human body. She flew easily over the guards and followed the rocky mountain road from the sky. The pass was long and rather steep and Will started to wonder how long she was supposed to fly before seeing something that would indicate a form of life when suddenly she felt something hitting her. Something forced her to de-transform and without a warning she started falling to the ground, having lost her bird like form. She landed on her feet and looked surprised around. She could clearly feel a sort shield behind her and she wondered why it was there, or why it forced her to transform back to her Guardian form. She shrugged it off and looked at the path she'd been following. It was still steep and rocky and Will sighed annoyed. Why did this guy decided to be a hermit anyway?

She started walking, hoping for Lisa and the village below that this was not just a stupid rumor. The rocks were pointy and were sometimes blocking the path, forcing Will to climb them. The sun shone constantly and the warmth was overpowering. Will cursed herself for forgetting to bring some water along. She had food but she had no water. As she crawled up yet another rock she felt the drought and heath getting to her. She started seeing things double and the ground seemed to sway beneath her. She felt how her head hit the ground and slowly she lost consciousness.

A sound of metal against metal reached her ears. A fierce pain filled her head and Will winced. What, in the name of all that was holy, was making such an unbearable sound? She groaned softly and went to sit up, her hand holding her head. She heard that whatever was making the sound, stopped and she slowly opened her eyes. The sun was still high in the sky and Will noticed she was laying in the shadow of some rocks. A bowl with water was standing next to her, as well as her cloak. She also noticed that she was still in her Guardian clothes and she sighed. Whoever helped her must have done it because of her clothing. Probably some villager who was travelling the mountains.

"So you're awake then?"

The voice sounded like an old record yet there was a spark of youth hidden within it. Will shrieked as an old, wrinkled man suddenly appeared in front of her. He wore a dirty black apron and some grimy grey pants. He completed his outfit with some worn sandals and a heavy hammer in his right hand. His grey hair was done in a knot on the back of his head and he had a small beard and moustache. He smiled at her, showing that he missed several teeth.

He clacked with his tongue as Will crawled a bit back out of shock. He chuckled afterwards and took the bowl of water.

"My dear, shrieking won't bring you anywhere. Here, drink some water." He said good-natured.

Will raised an eyebrow, not accepting the bowl of water. Who was this man and why was he acting so natural around her? She was sure that she was radiating her usual aura of darkness. She saw how the man smiled friendly at her. He placed the bowl back and chuckled again.

"If you don't want to, your choice." He said with a grin. "But I bet you are thirsty."

Now that he mentioned it, she was rather thirsty. Will remembered that she had fainted because of the warmth and her lack of water. She used her magic to lift the bowl and bring it to her, not planning on getting closer to this man. If he was not affected by her aura, then it meant that he was either rather evil himself or that he was stronger than she was. In other words, he was a too big of a mystery to engage a fight with.

The man chuckled again as he watched her drink. She ignored his happy mood and drank slowly, keeping her eyes on the man. Once she was done drinking she placed the bowl next to her, looking curious at the man in front of her.

"Who are you?" She asked.

The man looked curious back at her and grinned.

"Well… My name hasn't been used for years." He said. "I don't think I remember it myself!"

Will sighed slightly annoyed. This guy thought he was funny as well. Her eyes fell on the hammer in his hand and the apron he was wearing. A sudden idea came to her mind.

"You wouldn't, by any chance, be The Smith?" She asked calmly.

The man smiled at her and nodded.

"My my! What luck do I have!" He said. "Meeting someone with whom I can talk to, who wears my own creation and who even knows my name! It's been a long time since I last saw you Wilhelmina."

Will faked a smile, but groaned inwardly at the use of her full name. She saw that The Smith kept looking at her in a curious way and she shrugged a bit. This guy gave her the strange feeling that she was safe, yet in danger.

"So it's true then. You make the Guardian outfits." She replied.

The Smith seemed to shudder at the word 'outfit' and clacked impatiently with his tongue.

"Outfit." He said indignant. "Outfit. Pffft. The Oracle should not give my armor such an unworthy reference."

Will grinned at the man as she could clearly see that he wasn't happy with the ruler of Kandrakar. She raised an eyebrow as the eyes of The Smith kept going up and down her body and she felt the urge of blasting him arise. She kept her calm however and waited for the man to speak.

"Wilhelmina." He spoke, his voice holding surprise. "You've changed a lot since I last saw you. Where are your wings?"

Will's face darkened considerably and she saw The Smith raising his eyebrow. She scoffed a bit and glanced the other way. She didn't notice how a strange power was forcing her to answer The Smith.

"The other Guardians betrayed and attacked me." She forced out. "My wings were destroyed beyond repair, so I cut them off."

The Smith merely nodded and kept walking around her, muttering things under his breath. He extended his hand and she accepted it. He pulled her up and kept walking around her, looking up and down her body.

"You're here because you want another armor?" He then questioned, swinging his hammer over his shoulder.

Will nodded fiercely, making The Smith nod in return.

"Yes. Yes. Your magic is going haywire because the wrong clothing." He murmured.

Will raised an eyebrow. It was the fault of her Guardian armor that her powers were hurting her? The Smith seemed to sense the question and gestured her to follow him, while he started explaining.

"Yes. Yes. I made that armor especially for you, with the thought that you would not hold more power than one Heart." He said. "More Hearts became unbearable for the armor and the armor tried to diminish it by force whenever you entered your human body. But then again, I never thought you would merge with the Heart of Kandrakar."

Will let the information wash over her as The Smith stopped near an anvil. The anvil stood some distance from a strange looking furnace out of which flames were bursting. Several strange metals and cloths were laying around the workplace, as well as several tools. A newly finished sword lay next to the anvil.

"So it was my out…I mean my armor." Will muttered softly.

The Smith nodded and looked patiently at her. Will raised an eyebrow and looked around. She didn't know why he was waiting, but he didn't seem to be willing to make a new armor for her on his own.

"Could you…Make a new armor for me?" She asked, having the feeling this guy was planning to make her do unreasonable stuff before he would call her worthy of his armors.

To her surprise The Smith grinned broadly and nodded, before he ran to get his stuff. As he took a measuring tape and started to run around her body, measuring her.

"So…Anything I need to take into account?" He muttered to her.

Will looked confused at the man. Why were people saying that he was picky? She just asked him and he went to work. No unreasonable quests or whatever.

"Aren't you supposed to check if I'm pure of heart?" She asked confused.

The Smith stopped measuring and rolled up the tape. He sat in front of Will, who kept standing. He chuckled a bit as he looked up.

"You already proved yourself, young lady." He said, grinning only more when he saw Will's confused expression. "You went through the dome without any problem so you are qualified to wear my armor."

Will raised an eyebrow. She hadn't felt a dome or something distinctly like that. What was he talking about?

"I haven't seen a dome." She said dryly.

The Smith chuckled again and cracked his knuckles.

"Of course not. It's invisible." He said grinning. "But it keeps everyone out who aren't pure of heart. Prince Phobos has been trying to enter it for months now, stating that his heart was pure evil. Bah, I've seen eviler birds than him. No, he's nothing like you my dear."

Will only felt her pride rise. So she had a pure heart. She chuckled herself. When she was born she was pure of heart in a good way. Now her heart was pure evil. She found it highly amusing that Phobos kept failing while she had no problem getting here, even if it was thanks to him and his girlfriend that she turned out like this anyway.

"So, anything you want me to add to your armor?" The Smith asked, pulling Will out of her train of thoughts.

Will looked at her Guardian outfit and then back at The Smith. She had a feeling that the Oracle had a say in the way of how the outfits should look like, so she just shrugged.

"I think I want an armor that is me." She said. "An armor that fits me perfectly."

The Smith smiled.

"Finally! After creating so many Guardian armors I can finally create an armor meant for someone. The Oracle always wants them in the same color scheme with the same wings, while I often find it hideous to put fairy wings on some Guardian's back because it does not fit! But he says it's good for their unity or whatever. I say it's rubbish. If they can be in unity if they wear different outfits when human, then why can't they have different armor when Guardian?" He said as he went to search for materials.

Will grinned as she watched him go to work when she figured something out.

"Wait…Don't you need my human measurements for the armor?" She asked him.

The Smith stopped with taking a strange metal from a box and looked thoughtfully at her.

"Well…If you want to use half of your powers in your armor, fine by me. But I thought you wanted to go full out." He said as he scratched his head.

Will slowly contemplated the pros and cons and then nodded with a grin.

"Never mind then." She said politely. "Just continue."

The Smith hadn't heard her as he was already back to searching for the right materials. Will went to sit on a nearby rock, watching how The Smith was searching and running all over the place. Suddenly he stood in front of her, an awkward look on his face and her cloak in his hands.

"There are some things I need to ask you." He said dryly, despite looking awkwardly at her.

Will raised another eyebrow and nodded, signing him to continue.

"First of all, I need to destroy your former armor." He said. "Because else you cannot 'assimilate' with your new armor."

Will looked confused at him and he sighed.

"Normally the Heart of Kandrakar activates the armor I merge with the Guardians." He explained impatiently.

Will nodded slowly. It did make sense. How else could the right outfit appear when they transformed? It was all because of the connection with the Heart.

"And secondly." He said, getting her attention once again. "I need to make three cuts in your back."

This felt more like an attack than the previous statement and Will quickly jumped to her feet, looking dangerously at the man in front of her.

"Why would that be necessary?" She asked, her voice dangerously cold.

The Smith did not recoil and looked dryly at her.

"Because your wings need to grow in. They are supposed to be attached to your back. Normally the Heart would force this, but seeing your age and your power, I believe that forcing your wings to grow in would be dangerous. That's why I'll grow them in manually." He explained impatiently.

Will looked confused at him. Not only did she not know that the wings were forced upon them when transforming, but she also didn't see why there had to be three cuts instead of two. The Smith was impatiently waving with her cloak and she just sighed annoyed before grabbing it. She went to some of the higher rocks and quickly undressed herself, finding that she did wear her normal underwear in her transformed state. She threw the cloak around her and folded her shirt, skirt and stockings neatly. She took her boots and walked back to The Smith, who was searching for a mold.

When he saw her return he quickly huddled to her and took her armor, checking if everything was there, and went to the anvil. There he started to chant in a strange language, throwing some old leaves over the armor. Will raised skeptically an eyebrow, not seeing how this was going to destroy her outfit, when suddenly a pang went through her. She felt as if something was disconnecting from her and she gasped briefly for air. Her former armor suddenly caught fire and burnt in a matter of seconds. Will stood amazed. The man was truly stronger than she'd reckoned the first time she saw him.

She watched how The Smith took a variety of materials from his stash and how he walked to the forge. Metal, cloth and just ordinary rock were among the material and Will truly wondered how he was planning to forge an armor out of that, not to mention that she was highly curious to what he would create. The Smith placed the materials, at what seemed a random order, near the furnace while the furnace shot white hot flames at the materials. To Will's surprise the materials melted together and turned into a curious opal black color. She watched how The Smith took the searing hot metal in his hands as if it was nothing and how he started to create a thread out of it. He kept repeating this strange procedure until he thought it was enough. Then, to Will's surprise, he took out two sticks, which oddly resembled knitting needles, yet they were smaller and encrusted with rubies. Her eyes widened as The Smith took the metal-like thread and started to knit at a pace that was inhuman. She always thought that the process of making an armor would take some time, but this was something she never imagined. Slowly a sort glove appeared from it, in the same opal color as the material. It was a short glove and The Smith quickly lay it aside, humming a tune as he started to create another one, this one would reach to Will's elbow while the first one would only reach her wrist. Once the second glove was done, The Smith laid the needles down, muttering to himself.

She watched how he walked to some cages Will hadn't noticed before and screeching was clearly audible. The Smith reach inside one of the cages and pulled three black feathers out of it. He then slowly walked to her, holding a strange golden dirk, again encrusted with several rubies. He gestured her to lower the cloak at her back. Again a strange shiver went through her. This man was so strange. So mysterious. He seemed to be good of will and an aura was telling her he could be trusted, but her own experience had taught her to be wary of people and her own lack in trust for The Smith was making her scared of him.

She lowered the cloak at her back and for a short second she felt how the cold metal pierce her skin, at the same place where her right wing used to be. Not even a second later she felt how something almost plastic like penetrated the skin on her back and how it tried to make contact with the muscles in her back. It was a strange pain that coursed through her. She could just feel how the feather grew bigger. The pain was nothing compared to the pain she felt when her wings were cut off, but it was hurting her enough to force tears up her eyes.

The pain stopped and she gasped for air. She had been unconsciously keeping her breath for the duration of the pain. She panted softly and as she did so, she finally noticed that she was moving something behind her with every breath she took. She tried to look around, wondering how her new wing would look like when The Smith spoke up again.

"That's a good girl." He said, making Will silently growl. "Now prepare yourself for wing number 2."

Right when he said that, Will felt the sensation of metal piercing her skin once again, this time a bit higher than where her left wing had been. Again she felt how the feather touched her muscles and how it grew rapidly, yet she noticed that the weight of the left wing was less than the right wing. Before she could even bother to ask, she felt how The Smith made a third cut and how the last feather made contact with her muscles. As the third wing grew, Will felt how the strange pain increased. She felt how her energy was being pulled away and slowly she fell unconscious. The last thing she saw was the smirk on The Smith's face.

When she woke up she felt a strange cramp in her back. She stretched a bit before she noticed that she was only wearing her underwear and her cloak. She felt a breeze blow over her shoulder and slowly her memories returned. She looked quickly around, but found that The Smith was gone. Instead she found some clothing laying next to her, neatly folded. She noticed it was of the same opal color as the gloves The Smith had made before growing her wings, so she reckoned this was meant for her. A quick energy search told her that The Smith was still around, yet too far away to get a good peek at her.

Her eyes wandered over the clothing. It looked like ordinary clothes but when her hand touched it, she felt a strong magic within it. The clothes felt colder than they should be and Will even felt some earth energy within it. Without thinking she picked it up and held it up. The skirt was long and tattered at the end, as if it had been ripped during a fight. The shirt was sleeveless and completely covered her body except for a diamond shaped hole at the place of her stomach, reminding Will of Nerissa's Guardian outfit. Two black boots, similar to her old ones, completed the armor.

She shed her cloak and pulled the upper half of her armor over her head, completely forgetting that she had sported wings. When she finally remembered them, she noticed that the upper half of her armor easily merged with the wings, in other words it wasn't stopped by them. Her wings went through it as if there was nothing there and Will smiled as she caught a glimpse of her wings. Raven black wings fluttered a bit on the wind that was blowing over the mountain plain. She quickly slipped on the skirt, the boots and gloves. The moment when she'd completed her outfit, she could feel how her magic was calming down. How it was being controlled by her new outfit and she noted how the pain that her magic had been inflicting, started to disappear.

"I assume you like it?"

Will turned around, having the feeling she was quicker than before, and looked at The Smith. He was smiling smugly at her while holding a body sized mirror. Will could take a good look at herself and she smiled. This was truly her. She was no fairy or a Guardian. She was an angel, fallen to places where not even the devil dared to venture. Lightning coursed over her hand as she flexed it and with a swift flick of her wrist, she exploded a nearby rock.

"Perfect." She said with a nod.

The Smith smiled at her and held his hand up. Will raised an eyebrow. He wasn't thinking she would pay him, did he?

"Your hand please." He said calmly.

Will slowly placed her hand on his and she could feel the magical power he possessed. Silently she thanked herself for having the patience to stay polite with this man for she was not sure if she could have fought him without a problem.

The moment she touched his hand, The Smith started to chant in the same ancient language as before. Her hand started to burn slightly while she could clearly feel how the gap, which she felt the moment her Guardian outfit got destroyed, started to fill up. She even felt something else create a connection with her.

The moment that The Smith stopped chanting, Will retracted her hand. The Smith exhaled loudly and sat down while he look at her. Will pulled off her glove and noticed a small black spot on her hand palm. The mark was similar to her own sign and she only raised her eyebrow, not bothering to ask why she was branded with a mark.

"You felt something else connecting with you, didn't you?"

Will didn't bother to look at the Smith and nodded as she put her glove back on. The Smith pulled himself up and grinned at her.

"Good. Cause, while I was working on your armor, I had this strange craving of creating yet another armor. It seems that you've got someone very dear to you." He said with a grin.

Will looked confused at him, as she could not think of anyone who would be dear to her. She'd abandoned those feelings a long time ago, so either this guy was talking rubbish or she was still holding some of the weaker emotions.

The Smith seemed to notice her confusion and shook his head.

"Okay. Okay. Maybe I put it a bit awkward." He said, clearly thinking Will had a crush or something similar to that. "But there has to be a guy that's special for you, cause else I wouldn't have made that armor."

Will grinned. A guy who was special to her. She could think of only one guy. She might not hold feelings for him, but his were clearly strong enough to convince The Smith. But if he deserved an armor, then who was she to deny it?

She nodded her head in thanks and made amends to return to her castle. She'd been gone long enough and she could not wait to test her new armor and the full extent of her powers, without groaning in pain.

"Oh, before you go." The Smith said, stopping her at the last moment. "You can't transform to your human form for at least a week, three days if you'll fly your way back. If you do transform back, your wings will fall of the moment you retransform."

Will grinned and turned her head, looking directly at the man.

"Who said I wanted to return to being just human, anyway?" She said, flapping her new wings.

_End Flashback_

The flying had been a pain to learn. Three wings were strange to coordinate, yet after a full day of hovering above the ground she managed to fully move them at her will.

A groan came past her lips as her legs started to scream in pain. She had pushed her body to its limits once again, only this time she had to push it even further. She didn't have the power to teletransport to her chambers for she was too tired to even lift her fingers. Her vision started to blur as the bridge to the castle came into sight. The ground swayed more and more and she felt like she could be collapsing anytime when suddenly a pair of warm arms wrapped around her. A strange grassy scent was caught by her nose and she looked straight into a pair of emerald eyes. Despite the pain and fatigue she felt, she smirked.

"Perfect timing, rebel boy."

…

It had been three days since he'd last seen her. She'd left for Hartgard without giving a specific reason. Now she was here, exhausted and near unconsciousness, laying in his arms. Her breathing started to slow down and he felt how her fingers dug in his skin. She was trying to pull herself up.

Caleb frowned slightly as he placed his arms underneath her legs and back, lifting her like a little child. He could clearly see Will's annoyed look, but he paid no heed to that. She was too tired to stand up, let alone walk to her own chambers. He carried her to her chambers, her arms tightly around his neck and he could clearly feel how her energy was returning already.

"You shouldn't have gone on your own." He berated her. "You could have been spotted or worse."

She breathed a laugh and he could see mirth sparking in her eyes. Why was she pushing herself so much? She shouldn't be exposing herself like this. Didn't she see that she was only endangering herself?

From the corner of his eyes he could see Will's personal maid hurrying at them, worry in her eyes. At least he wasn't the only one who seemed to care for her.

"How is she?"

Caleb felt how Will moved in his arms to turn to the maid.

"Relax Lisa." She said. "I just need some rest and a good bath. So if you would be so kind to fill the tub."

Lisa bowed for her and Caleb smiled appreciatively at her. Will seemed to be more her old self than he thought. Maybe the lack of Cedric around her has helped her to regain her former self. Somewhere, he felt bad. Will wasn't supposed to be this nice. The cold in her voice was still there, which reassured him, but he missed the sneering.

"Are you done daydreaming or are you waiting for the guards to lift you?"

He glared at Will who looked rather bored at him. Why was he worrying. Will was herself and nothing would change that. His glare turned to a smirk and he went to her chambers. He was quick to lay her on her bed, a smile on her face.

"Next time when you decide to go out, make sure one of us accompanies you." He said, his voice heavy with anger for her stupidity.

Will grinned merely and she pulled herself up, surprising Caleb with her newfound energy. She placed her hand on his chest and Caleb noted how her hand was suddenly a lot warmer than before. He looked surprised at her hand when suddenly he felt her hot lips on his. His eyes widened in surprise and he looked at her. He answered her kiss and he felt how something, other than her tongue, was entering his body. As if something was binding with him. He wanted to bring her to her bed, when Will broke the kiss. He could hear someone cough awkwardly behind him and he felt how a blush crept over his face. Will smiled at him, seduction laying in her eyes.

"See it as a thank you for helping me to my room." She said as she waved her hand to him.

While she turned around, leaving to take her bath, he felt how his body transformed. His muscles started to bulk a bit more and he himself felt more agile. He noticed how his armor changed. He was now wearing a black armor, with Will's golden sign on his chest plate. His armor was defined with a golden rim and horns came from his shoulder plates.

He slowly moved his arms and legs, noticing how easily he could move in it. His head then turned to the door where Will had disappeared. Where had she been to?

_**[A/N] Finally! I hate this chapter with all my heart and I'm glad I finally managed to end it! Next chapter will be so much more fun! This was more filler than something else… Thought I wanted to give Will a new armor and I didn't want to go with the obvious "The Heart changes the outfit to the bearer." I got help with the outfit from NIkly and The Smith is a bit based of the smith of Inuyasha. (I just love that guy) Caleb got a new armor/transformation because well… We've got "Holding a Heart Elyon", "Shapeshifter Cedric and Miranda" and not to forget "Holding two Hearts and being badass Will". Caleb seemed terribly underpowered, so the armor that Will gave him (which she'd gotten from The Smith) is sorta like a Guardian transformation for him. And Will isn't planning on turning him back.**_

_**Also, please remember how the maids and villagers call Will. It will be important later on.**_

_**REVIEW!**_


	12. Chapter 11 Betrayal smells

**_[A/N] I forgot about it...but Mira (Yan Lin's twin sister) is in China..._**

**_Also if you've got trouble with imagining Will's new outfit, go to my DeviantArt page. NIkly helped me greatly with the idea and sketched a couple of ideas. You can click on my Homepage to go to my DeviantArt page._**

**_Also, there are 3 Harry Potter references in this chapter. Can you find them?_  
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**_Now on with the story!_  
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**Chapter 11 Betrayal smells**

Things were just plain wrong. She'd known it the moment they'd betrayed Will. She had been reluctant to actually betray Will, but it was either that, or die alongside of her and Taranee didn't want to give up on life just yet. She bit on her pen as her eyes wandered aimlessly over the numerous math equations which she'd written down. She ought to be learning for her test next week, but things weren't adding up.

Caleb's strange mission, the strange attack on the village Meridian, Elyon's reappearance and disappearance, the death of Napoleon, Caleb renouncing his position as leader and even electing Aldarn, Caleb's strange aura and the severe lack of portals.

Now that she thought about it, it was mostly Caleb who was acting strange. She had tried to find him in the villages of the west of Metamoor during those few occasions they managed to get there. Only three portals had opened since the moment she'd decided to watch Caleb, the last one mysteriously closed four days ago. Whenever she went to the villages, neatly dodging Cornelia's questions to where she was going, she tried to get information. Information about Caleb and about the two shapeshifters that were said to roam around.

People didn't know about Caleb, which was obvious since he was undercover though Taranee had hoped to find an informant of him somewhere, but they seemed to run scared whenever she mentioned the shapeshifters. The people all talked about a certain Warrior Queen. Some people were rumouring that she was crueler than Phobos and that the two shapeshifters worked for her. When Taranee asked for the identity or the appearance of this "Warrior Queen", people looked at her as if she was crazy. They said that they did not speak her name and they described her as a mixture between the most gorgeous woman (it were mostly men who mentioned that) and the Devil himself. Nothing more was said about her.

The most curious thing about it all was that Taranee had the strangest feeling when she was in the forests of the west. As if someone close to her was nearby, yet she never found anyone.

She threw her pen down and sighed annoyed. It was a stupid idea to start her math right after lunch. She hated Uriah for trying to shoot some firework inside the cafeteria. The school was now closed for three days and all she could do was study. Nigel was practicing full time with Matt and the band and Hay Lin was occupying herself with her boyfriend. Irma had called two hours ago, asking if she wanted to go shopping with her and Cornelia. They didn't seem to care that Christmas was still two weeks away. She had politely declined the invitation. She wasn't in the mood to go shopping and Irma and Cornelia were too gossipy for her taste.

A sad grin formed on her lips as her eyes wandered to a picture on her desk. There she was, together with Will on Shell beach. It were times like these that she regretted killing her. If Will was still around, Taranee might have had a best friend. But then again, it was kill or be killed and Will was the weakest link. And besides that, she was sometimes worse than Cornelia and Irma put together, so perhaps it wasn't that bad that she was gone.

She frowned when she noticed how her thoughts were contradicting themselves. She sighed annoyed and put the picture upside down.

Her eyes wandered to the window as a strange and familiar feeling started to fill her. It was the same she felt when she was in the western forests on Metamoor. Quickly the feeling of fire filled her and Taranee didn't need to be a genius to know that somewhere a fire was starting.

Her gaze returned to her math book and decided that she could better go and look where the fire was blazing. Perhaps she could help. She would definitely do more than just sitting here and staring at easy equations.

…

Good thing he had to pee. If not, Ms. Rita would have asked him the question. How was he supposed to know where the river the Volga lay? He didn't live in Europe, so why would he care?

He grinned as he aimed for the urinal. He was completely alone, recess would start over 15 minutes and the sound of his piss ending in the urinal sounded so funny. Just like a dripping faucet, only the drops were following each other a lot quicker.

He shivered at the thought of it. Not because he hated the annoying time interval between drips of water of a dripping faucet, but because when he thought of water he automatically thought of Irma. It was almost a year ago when his sister told and showed him what she could do with water. Ever since she'd been using it in house for everything. To get him out of the bathroom, to brush her teeth, to drink and to prank him in more ways even he could imagine. It was as if water was always protecting her and he just couldn't drink while she watched. He was afraid she would make it disappear before he swallowed it or that she wouldn't allow him to swallow it. He knew she wouldn't harm him and she even scared some bullies off by using water to defend him, but he just thought it was creepy for someone to hold so much control over an element.

While he'd been drifting off he hadn't noticed he was done already. He kept staring at the urinal until he noticed there was no sound. He quickly zipped his zipper and flushed. As he went to wash his hands he smelled something. It wasn't the usual toilet scent. It was thicker, more dangerous. He sniffed again and his eyes widened in shock. At the same moment the fire alarm started ringing, but for some reason, none of the sprinklers went off. He didn't bother to wash his hands and ran to the door, hearing many other students running and screaming. He grabbed for the doorknob, but found that the door was locked. Someone had locked it and now he had no way out! There were no windows in this toilet and he could hardly flush himself through the toilet.

The smoke was now coming from underneath the door and Chris started to scream, hoping that someone would hear him. He heard how people kept running past him and he started to slam at the door, hoping that someone would notice it above the ruckus. His throat felt sore and soon the smoke was too heavy for him to breath, let alone scream. He started pulling and pushing at the doorknob, even if he didn't hear anyone anymore. They hadn't noticed him. Sweat was pearling down his temples and his heart was racing like mad. His breathing became irregular and he started to feel lightheaded as more and more smoke entered his system.

"Please! Someone! Help me!" He yelled in a vain attempt.

Suddenly the door swung open and Chris thanked God for being able to escape. He ran out of the door, only to find more smoke entering. He quickly ran at the closest exit, when he found his way barred by massive fires. The smoke was thick and he could barely see, let alone breath, but he knew he had to find another way. He ran back, hoping to make it to the other exit, but yet again he found a massive wall of fire in his way. Everywhere he went, fire was blocking his path and never before had he wished for his sister. She would not only protect him, but also save his life.

Slowly Chris found that he couldn't get enough oxygen. The fire was closing in on him and he had nowhere to go. There were no windows and the doors were sealed by fire walls. He fell to the ground, breathing heavily. His eyes were tearing and his nose was full of smoke.

Was he going to die?

Smoke surrounded him everywhere and he noticed how his blinking started to slow down. His head became lighter and lighter and he could hear his breathing becoming raspy. Suddenly he could see a figure in the fire. He wanted to yell at the person, to make him see he was laying there, but his body had too little oxygen for him to scream. He could see the figure coming closer and closer. It seemed as if the fires were bowing away for the figure. The more he saw of the figure, the more scared he became. Slowly he could see a tattered black skirt and a sleeveless shirt that covered the body of the figure, except for a diamond shaped opening around her stomach, where he could distinguish a dragon tattoo. Three raven black feathered wings came into view and a shiver ran over him. A cold filled his being despite for the burning fires around him. He heard a cold laughing and he could see the figure standing over him. His eyes widened when he recognized the hair color.

"Help me. Please." He whispered, not caring if he was asking a ghost for help.

He felt how her hand took his chin and he looked right into her cold, uncaring eyes.

"Pity. You would have grown up to be quite the handsome guy."

…

Aah, how she loved Christmas time. The stores were already full of Christmas cookies and presents and for the first time in her life, Irma agreed on going shopping with Cornelia, alone. With some of the baker's cookies in her hand, she walked next to Cornelia, while Cornelia was happily twittering about what she was planning to give to Lillian. After Lillian's and Matt's fainting spell, Cornelia had decided to watch over her sister even more and actually show that she truly loves her. Irma grinned as the blonde moaned about the high prizes for a golden necklace. Irma herself couldn't even buy half of the necklace, but she didn't mind looking at them.

They had been shopping for two hours by now and the only thing left on Irma's shopping list was a present for Chris. If she could find something within the next twenty minutes, she would be in time to hide the presents before her little brother came home. He might be a nuisance, but she did love him.

"Irma, shall we enter the toy store? I think you'll find something for Chris there." Cornelia said, pointing at a store on their right.

"Wow, you don't say?" Irma replied sarcastically, though her grin was big and she walked to the shop, Cornelia trailing right behind.

"Sorry, next time I'll point you at a porcelain store." Cornelia replied annoyed, but Irma saw the smile on the blonde's face.

Irma rolled her eyes as she walked to the games.

"Come on Corny. You know I'm just joking. Lighten up already! It's almost Christmas!" She said, her eyes sweeping past the numerous games.

She heard the blonde grumble and she snickered softly. Cornelia would never get used to her nickname, but Irma was too fond of it to drop it. She sought between the newest games, knowing that her little russet haired brother had been patiently waiting for the newest Elder Scrolls game. Or perhaps she should look between the action figures?

She shook her head and walked through the store. Why was she so indecisive when it came to her little brother's Christmas present?

…

She watched amused as Irma went from the games to the action figures, to card games and back to games. The girl always complained about her little brother, but Cornelia knew that Irma loved her brother as much as she loved her sister.

She snickered softly as Irma made yet another round through the store. Normally it would be her walking through a store for a dozen times, but then it would be a clothes shop and it would be Irma who would make the sarcastic remarks.

Irma finally seemed to have gotten to a conclusion and stopped once again in front of the games. Cornelia sighed relieved when she saw Irma reaching for one of the games when suddenly Irma's phone started to ring. Irma let the game fall back and picked up her phone.

"Jelly's pudding, how may we serve?" She answered, getting a giggle from Cornelia.

However, her grin quickly failed and Cornelia watched with growing anxiety as Irma's face immediately paled the moment the other person started to talk. Tears started to form in her eyes and Cornelia wondered what had happened for Irma to pale so quickly.

Irma pushed the button on the phone and rushed outside, right past Cornelia. Cornelia raised her eyebrow and quickly followed. Irma was walking rapidly through the shopping district and Cornelia could clearly see how the tears fell past her cheeks. Cornelia started to running to catch up with Irma.

"Hey, what happened?" She asked, her voice soft and full with concern.

Irma didn't say anything at first, sobbing softly before rubbing the tears away and turning a corner. Cornelia noticed how they were quickly making their way to Lillian's and Chris's school. Their parents had decided to let them go to another high school, so to give their sisters some peace in their final years at Sheffield Institute.

"There was a fire."

If Cornelia hadn't been paying attention to Irma's wellbeing, she would have missed that. The words were so soft and full of pain that Cornelia started to fear for the life of Lillian. But if Lillian had been harmed then she would have gotten a call, wouldn't she? The only thing that would be logical was…

Cornelia gasped and she grabbed for Irma's hand, gently squeezing in it.

"What happened to Chris?" She asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

Irma shook her head and Cornelia thought she didn't want to answer. Then, without a warning, Irma halted and Cornelia turned to her, seeing new tears roll over her cheeks.

"He…He's… He got caught in the fire…And…" Irma stammered, sobs constantly interrupting her sentence, but Cornelia understood.

"O Irma." She said and went to hug her friend.

Irma accepted the hug and cried silently on her shoulder. Cornelia had never expected to see Irma like this, but she also had never expected for Chris to die in a school fire. She had always thought that if he died prematurely, he would have died because of one of their enemies.

Irma's sobs quickly stopped and the water queen was looking her right in the eyes. Irma's eyes were red and she had red spots in her face because of the crying. Her mascara was running down as well, giving Irma a horror appearance, yet Cornelia couldn't do anything but feel pity for her friend.

Irma walked past her without saying another word and Cornelia quickly followed Irma once again. Within no time they arrived at the horror scene. The building had collapsed and there was still smoke coming from it. Compared to this, their school auditorium's was nothing.

Children and teachers were standing outside and Cornelia quickly found her little sister. She was standing next to Irma's parents and a stretcher with someone covered with blankets on it and tears were rolling down her face as well. Cornelia and Irma hurried to them and Lillian was quick to hug her close. Cornelia whispered soothing words at her little sister while Irma looked almost zombie-like at the person covered in blankets. Irma's hand went slowly to the blankets. Cornelia felt a heavy knot in her stomach as her eyes wandered with abhorrence at the slightly coaled face of the once, for his age handsome, Christopher Lair. The few strands of hair were pretty much the only way for her to recognize him. She felt how Lillian pressed herself more into her and she saw how Irma's mother started crying loudly once again while Mister Lair was hugging his wife closely, tears rolling down his cheeks. He silently led his wife to the ambulance to calm her down. Cornelia's eyes then wandered to Irma. Irma was looking like a statue at the burnt corpse of her brother. She could hear some soft sobs and she was sure that at this moment, Irma was speechless.

"He's dead, isn't he?"

Cornelia turned surprised around to see Taranee standing behind her. Taranee didn't look so pale as the rest of them did. She even thought that Taranee looked a bit triumphant, though she also seemed to feel a lot of guilt.

Before she could react to the question Irma spoke up.

"You." She whispered softly, making Cornelia turn her head again to Irma.

Irma was looking furiously at Taranee and Cornelia didn't get it. What was wrong with her? Irma let out a feral scream and jumped at Taranee. Taranee hadn't seen her coming and she fell on her back, with Irma on top of her. Irma was clenching her fists and started to pound on Taranee, while Taranee desperately tried to defend herself.

Cornelia quickly let go of Lillian and jumped into the fray, trying to stop Irma from killing Taranee. She finally managed to get the feral Irma of Taranee, who crawled back in fear. Taranee had a thick lip and by the way she was squinting her right eye Cornelia was sure that she would also develop a black eye.

"What's your problem?" Taranee nearly yelled, but because of the ruckus everywhere, it wasn't noticed.

"My problem?" Irma yelled back enraged. "It was you, wasn't it! You were the one against the betrayal so you thought to be clever to burn down their school, hum? You wanted to have a bit of revenge on us for killing her, because now you've got no one to bond with! Well the joke's on you! You only killed my little brother! He didn't do a thing! That's just low, even for you."

Cornelia looked shocked between the still wrestling Irma and the now enraged looking Taranee. Flames were reflecting in her glasses as Taranee spoke up.

"Are you retarded? Are you forgetting I helped you killing her? And why would I take my petty revenge on your little brother? It's not that I would gain anything from it, right?" Taranee yelled back, obviously refraining herself from jumping on Irma.

"Oh yeah? Where were you when we went shopping? I bet you were just setting the school on fire while we were away!" Irma retorted.

"I was at home. Studying." Taranee retorted, her fingers catching fire. "Something you probably never heard off!"

"Are you implying something, fire cracker?" Irma challenged.

"That you're a dumbass for not seeing that I haven't done this, you nitwit!" Taranee retorted.

Cornelia knew things were getting out of hand and quickly decided to go against their rules. She teletransported away, taking Irma with her.

…

Taranee breathed heavily as she looked at the spot where Irma and Cornelia had disappeared. Her hearts was still racing and her eyes slowly went to Lillian, who was still trembling on the same spot where Cornelia had left her. When Lillian noticed her looking, she jumped up and quickly went away. Taranee's eyes wandered back to the burnt school.

She was sure it wasn't her. She had been at home. But why did Irma think that she'd done it?

Again Taranee felt the familiar feeling she had when she was in the western woods of Metamoor and she turned around. She was sure someone was watching her, but as her eyes went over the numerous bystanders, she could not see anyone suspicious. She shook her head as she returned to the problem at hand.

Irma truly believed that she'd lit the fire. Was this a side-effect of Will's betrayal? Did Irma stop trusting the others as well? Now that Taranee was thinking about it, was she trusting the other girls? They could easily gang up on her and kill her, just like what happened to Will. What if Irma was trying to persuade Cornelia into killing her?

Taranee shook her head. She was getting paranoid. Irma wouldn't do such a stupid thing and even if she did, Cornelia would stop her. Cornelia couldn't effort to lose power, not now they had this third party entering her game.

Now that she was thinking about it, perhaps it was this party that set up the fire and killed Chris.

Taranee frowned at her own thoughts. If she wasn't thinking about conspiracy theories against her, she would go paranoid over the fact that one coincidental fire was started by their enemy.

Taranee sighed as she scratched her head while looking at the burnt down high school. She really needed some rest.

…

Three days. It had been three days ago since Taranee killed her little brother. Irma kicked angrily at the sand as she thought back to that day. She was sure Taranee had killed her little brother, all because she wanted some revenge on Will's death. Well, Irma wanted to kill her for that, but it was Cornelia who stopped her. Not only would Cornelia lose another powerhouse but what would her parents think if they found out that their daughter, and now only child, had killed another?

Irma bit her tongue as she felt how new tears were forming. She had been crying for the past days. Crying because she felt so powerless, despite that she held the power over water. She could have been there. She could have doused the fire for her little brother and perhaps then he would still be alive. She could have persuaded Taranee into coming with her and Cornelia to prevent her from killing her little brother.

All these scenarios were filling her mind and Irma sighed loudly. She had hoped that the sea could give her some tranquility, but the sea was pretty dark and restless today. As if something was happening, something bad.

She shook her head and walked further, ignoring the sometimes painful calls of the water. She didn't know why, but the water had been restless ever since her brother died. Perhaps it was blaming her for it, not that she would be surprised. Yet the darkness that was now clouding it, together with the only to her audible screams of pain made her queasy. It was unnatural and it made Irma feel worse than she already felt.

Shivers ran over her spine and she walked a bit faster. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to walk over the beach today.

"Peter!"

"He's drowning!"

Irma's eyes widened when she heard it and started running towards the screams. If Peter died by drowning then she was sure that Taranee would kill her family out of revenge. Plus if Peter died because of his own stupid mistake, then Irma could not take another sort of revenge.

…

The sea was a bit rough, but that was just how he liked it. No matter if it was summer or winter, Peter surfed all year long. It was the way for him to forget about everything and focus just on one thing. Surfing.

Or, that's what's supposed to happen whenever he takes his surfboard. But not today. He wasn't focusing on his techniques, or on how the waves went against his board and bodysuit. His mind was with his little sister. She had been so distressed ever since that fire at Chris's high school. She had told him that Irma was blaming her for the fire, while he knew that Taranee had been at home during the time the fire started. He just hoped that his sister would manage to make up with Irma before worse things would happen. He didn't think he would bare it to see his sister die of loneliness just because Irma was holding an unjustified grudge.

"Peter, keep your head in the game!" Joel yelled at him.

He looked around and waved at him, signing that he was paying attention to the waves. Luck would have it that right at that moment, a wave collided into him, knocking him off his board and into the ice cold water. Peter wasn't really surprised and started swimming up. How many times did he fall off his board today?

He continued swimming upwards, but then noticed that how more and faster he swam, the more water appeared above him. How was that possible? Water wasn't supposed to act like this. He was supposed to be above the surface right now, instead of still trying to reach it.

He started to note how he started to lack oxygen and he forced himself to keep himself from breathing. If he would open his mouth, everything would be over.

His mind went to Taranee and how much he loved it to be her big brother. From Taranee he went to his parents and he hoped they wouldn't mourn too long for him. His mind went back to Taranee and he wondered if this was Irma's doing, though he'd never thought that Irma would do such a low trick to take revenge on his little sister.

He slowly lost the energy and power to move his arms and legs and he felt how a strange numbness was taking a hold of his body. His mouth opened slightly and he could see how the air bubbles were leaving his mouth.

His eyes then caught something that shouldn't be here. A person with three black angel wings was now floating in front of him and his eyes widened as his heart made one extra jump to his throat. The last thought that ran through his head was the question why the devil would appear in such a beautiful appearance.

…

When she received the call she immediately set out, calling her parents on her cell phone. It was not possible. Irma wouldn't have. She couldn't have…

Taranee shook her head and kept running towards the beach. Her brother could not be dead. He was her big brother. He protected her when she was afraid. He gave her advice her parents could not give and he soothed her when her parents were not there. It was just impossible for Peter Cook to die.

The beach came into view and Taranee felt how her heart was pumping like mad and how her spleen was acting up. Despite that she accelerated even more. Her breath was raspy and her throat was soar. Her eyes full of tears and her head occupied with just one thought.

'Peter Cook was alive.'

Her feet dragged her to the beach. To the usual surfing spot of her brother. Her parents had told him to stop surfing in the winter, even his friends had, but Peter had ignored all the warnings.

Her eyes widened when she saw Joel and some of Peter's surf buddies, all standing around the lifeless form of her big brother. The urge to stop walking and to turn around overwhelmed her. She was just hallucinating, that's what it was. She should just go home and wait till dinner. Then Peter would enter with a big grin on his face and rub her through her hair, joking a bit and perhaps trying to out-eat her. Yes, she would stop walking towards the obviously fake body of her brother. But if she was so sure it was fake, then why did her feet keep walking? Why did her heart throb harder and why was she getting the feeling that she couldn't breathe?

She arrived near her brother's friends and she could hear their sobs. Joel, the only one she could properly recognize through her tear-filled eyes, was holding the phone and looked hopelessly at it. Taranee felt how her eyes were dragged to the body which lay between them. Peter's face was pale and a small spout of water came from his mouth.

For the first time since many, many years, Taranee's mind was blank. No thought infiltrated her head. It was as if she had left her own body and that she was looking how she fell to her knees in front of Peter, crying loudly. She could feel how Joel patted her on her shoulder and how he tried to sooth her, but there were no words that could sooth her. No gestures that could calm her. The only person who was always there for her and who always looked after her, had left her alone on this world. Now she had no one except for her parents, who are barely at home.

"Is…Is he dead?"

Her body stopped shocking when the meaning and the sound of the words finally settled in her mind. She could easily recognize that voice and she turned around so quickly that Joel backed off. Her enraged eyes found the almost guilty looking aqua marine eyes of the Water Guardian.

That moment she lost all possible control of her body and mind. It had to be Irma. Who else could have killed such an excellent swimmer as Peter? Why else would she be here?

As these questions ran through her mind, Taranee jumped at Irma, trying to get a hold of her throat. What was so difficult to believe that she wasn't the one who had killed Chris? Why was she trying to rip all the things that brought Taranee a feeling of life away from her?

Irma was struggling against her grip. She blasted her with a subtle water blast, making Taranee fall back to the ground. Before Taranee had managed to get back up, Irma teletransported away. Taranee let out a scream of fury and impotence before hitting the loose sand with her hands. Only Irma could be so cowardly as to gloat and run away. Taranee felt how more tears went to her eyes and she started hugging herself, crying softly and hoping this was perhaps the worst nightmare she ever had.

…

It was silent at the ice rink. Logical because it was winter and people found their happiness on real ice, but the ice rink held something serene to her. It gave her time to think and exercise to keep her body in shape. And an outlet for the built-up stress she was suffering. Though today her thoughts were not with Phobos, but with her friends. She could not believe how Taranee and Irma were blaming each other for the death of their brothers. How could they not see that it was just a simple coincidence? They haven't spoken in days and they even act as if the other did not exist. They even didn't go to the funerals of the other's brother. It was not just frustrating to see, but it was impacting on Hay Lin as well. The poor girl had been running and calling between the two girls yet to no avail. Now Hay Lin's mood was steadily going down and Cornelia herself felt how a depression was getting a hold of her.

Cornelia let out an annoyed sigh as she made a sharp turn on the ice. Her mind wandered to Lillian. Ever since Halloween she'd been a little less cheerier and she even claimed that her dreams were haunted by a winged creature. Cornelia had been very cautious about those warnings and she'd been keeping a closer eye on her little sister ever since. Even if the little toad did no longer hold any powers, it did not mean that she was allowed to get hurt or anything like that. Halloween was perhaps the night when she found out how much she cared for her little sister, even more than when Nerissa tried to lure her.

She shook her head and made a axle before turning once more. She was worrying about too many things. Things were going easy and it would be a matter of time before the two of them would make up. And if they wouldn't then she would remind them why they were a team.

…

It was worrisome. The Guardians were lacking a capable leader and they were warring amongst themselves. And her poor little Hay Lin, caught in the middle of it.

Yan Lin sighed as she scurried through the mountains of Heatherfield. She had hoped to find some left over herbs, even if the winter was fully raging. But the mountains were bare, just like the hope she had for the current generation of Guardians. When she'd heard about Will's untimely death and the sudden alliance Phobos she knew things were bound to go wrong. It had been their mission to stop Phobos and not join him.

Yan Lin had the nasty feeling that it had been Cornelia who'd been leading them that way and her instincts told her that Will hadn't died by a Lurden attack. It was Hay Lin's evasiveness on the subject that made her suspicious and the sudden accusation of betrayal among friends made her even more suspicious. Something told her that there had been a coup d'état and that the girls weren't as innocent as they claimed, which only pained her old heart. She'd thought she'd raised Hay Lin to be better than petty betrayal, especially after Nerissa…

"You thought wrong."

It was the wind that had whispered to her, but it did scare her. Who had said that? Who's voice could be so cold that it made Yan Lin's old bones rattle in fear. She had seen and heard many things, but this voice made her shiver as if she was frozen solid. Her instincts started to act and she started to walk away as quickly as her old legs could carry her.

The air had become colder and the wind was chilly. Something bad was in the air and Yan Lin started contemplating if it was a good idea to teletransport home instead of walking the entire way.

"You cannot escape."

This time she was sure she heard a voice. She stopped walking, despite her consciousness yelling at her to get away as quickly as possible. She turned her head around, trying to find the source of the sound.

"You're looking the wrong way."

She turned her head so quickly a cracking sound was heard. Her eyes widened as she gazed upon the person who was standing in front of her.

"You're still alive?" Were the words that fell from her lips as she stumbled back.

Something was wrong with the girl in front of her. Despite the obvious change in garment, Yan Lin could also sense a cloud of evil and power hanging around her. The girl merely grinned and shrugged.

"I've died months ago." She replied, but Yan Lin knew better.

She had survived whatever her fellow Guardians had tried to do to her and she was back for revenge. Yan Lin knew she had to escape and warn her granddaughter. Things were going out of hand and even though her little Hay Lin had been the cause, she couldn't stand it to see her suffer. She focused on her magic and hoped that she would still have enough breath to speak to her granddaughter, when she noticed that something was stopping her from teletransporting. She looked scared at the fallen angel before her and took a few more steps back.

"I told you. You cannot escape." She said coldly, making Yan Lin truly wonder what had happened to her.

Her eyes wandered to the diamond shaped opening in her dress and she saw something that made her easily put one and one together.

"It was you. At Halloween." She said, trying to keep fear out of her voice. Whatever would happen, she would not just bow for a rookie Guardian.

The fallen angel nodded slowly and took a step forward.

"I knew you knew about me." She said. "You were my mentor after all."

"Revenge is not the way, Will." Yan Lin replied, her voice slightly quivering.

Will gave a fruitless laugh.

"You sound like the Oracle." She said grinning. "Give him my regards and oh. Tell him his time is coming."

Yan Lin watched with fear in her heart how the young girl disappeared in a black mist. Without a warning, the ground started to shake. Yan Lin lost her balance and fell to the ground. The rumbling kept going on for some time and when it finally stopped, Yan Lin heard the threatening sound of falling rocks. From her position on the ground she could see how rocks were falling down the mountain hill, all coming straight at her. She tried to teletransport away, but she was again blocked. She looked in fear how the rocks came closer and closer. She would surely be killed. As the rocks were almost near her, Yan Lin looked at the sky.

"What went wrong?"

…

It was late. Grandma was usually never late. Hay Lin looked worried through her window. Her grandmother had gone to find some herbs in the Heatherfield mountains, even though Hay Lin had told her that nothing was growing there at the time of the year. But her grandmother was just stubborn and went to the mountains alone.

It had been four hours since she'd left and Hay Lin was getting worried. Grandma never missed dinner, so why would she stay out so late?

Hay Lin sighed and took her pencil again. She had tried to draw something in the hope of throwing the dark feeling off her chest. Ever since Irma and Taranee started to fight about the deaths of their brothers, Hay Lin was starting to feel anxious near the girls. What if they really did kill each other's brother? Were they planning on killing someone from her family as well? What if Cornelia would kill someone to remind them that she's in charge? A small laugh escaped her lips as she threw her pencil down. What a silly thought. Cornelia was her friend and she trusted her friends… But weren't Taranee and Irma friends too?

Before anymore dark thoughts could infiltrate her mind the phone rang. She jumped up and ran to it, hoping to hear Irma saying that she wanted to apologize to Taranee. She saw her mother walking calmly to the phone and Hay Lin sped up, grabbing the phone in front of her mother.

"Hello!" She almost yelled through the phone, making her mother look disapprovingly at her.

"Hay Lin?"

Hay Lin didn't let her smile fall. Even though it wasn't Irma or Taranee, Cassidy was also a good person to talk with.

"Cassidy! Hey, how are you?" She asked cheery.

"Hay… I think it's better if you and your parents came to the mountain range." Cassidy's voice said full of sadness. "There's been an avalanche."

…

The moment Cassidy had called she'd rushed to get her jacket. She using teletransporting she was the last to arrive. Cassidy's face was tear-stained and several men were still trying to find more bodies from under the avalanche. Cornelia saw Hay Lin crying over a body and she could see how her parents and Cassidy were talking with a park ranger.

A shiver ran over her spine as she slowly walked to Hay Lin and the body. Hay Lin's sobs were piercing her heart, but the eerie feeling that hang around this place made it even worse. It was as if the trees were blaming her. Blaming her for the death of Yan Lin. Cornelia swallowed softly and went to stand behind Hay Lin. She could see how her fragile frame was shaking from the sobs, but there was something that stopped Cornelia from touching and comforting her. As if Hay Lin was angry.

"So she's really dead?" She asked carefully, trying not to sound indifferent.

Hay Lin's sobs kept going on, but Cornelia could hear a faint mumble. Hay Lin did not mumble. If she did, it only meant bad news.

"Go away." Hay Lin whispered coldly.

Cornelia raised an eyebrow. What was wrong with Hay Lin? Didn't she see that she was just here to comfort her? Cornelia took a step forward but immediately regretted it as Hay Lin turned around.

"GO AWAY!" She cried angrily, blasting Cornelia with a strong gale, making her fall on the ground.

Cornelia looked scared at Hay Lin, who was breathing heavily and who was glaring coldly at her. What was wrong with her? Hay Lin couldn't become angry. She was too nice for that. Cornelia quickly staggered up and looked confused and hurt at Hay Lin.

"Hay, what's wrong with you?" Cornelia asked accusingly, making sure none of the park rangers would see their little showdown.

"What's wrong with me?" Hay Lin yelled angered. "What's wrong with you? Grandma never hurt you and only gave us advice! Is this your way of saying thanks?"

What was wrong with everybody? Were they forgetting that they were a team and that they could trust each other? Cornelia looked shocked at Hay Lin. How could she imply such a thing?

"I've been at the ice rink the whole day!" She replied, trying to calm Hay Lin down.

"Don't give me such a pathetic excuse, Corny." Hay Lin sneered. "If this is your reminder of showing who the leader is, then I would watch your family if I were you."

With that Hay Lin turned around and went back to sobbing over her grandmother. Cornelia looked in fear and surprise at Hay Lin. Had she really threatened her family just now? How dare she? She would be smarter than to actually try and attack any of Cornelia's family, wouldn't she?

Cornelia swallowed softly and walked away from Hay Lin. Perhaps if she found out what had caused the avalanche, than perhaps she could show Hay Lin that she hadn't done it. That she was innocent.

When she neared Cassidy and the Lins, the Lins walked away and Cassidy looked darkly at her. Was she also thinking that she had killed Yan Lin? Cassidy crossed her arms and looked sadly at Yan Lin's corpse.

"Why Cornelia? Why did you do it?" Cassidy asked, not looking at Cornelia. "I haven't told the Lins yet, but why did you kill Yan Lin?"

Cornelia looked flabbergasted at Cassidy. A knot fell in her stomach and tears were welling up. Why was everyone thinking she'd killed Yan Lin? It was hurting her and confusing her as well. Was there really no trust at all?

"Why do you think I did it? I was skating all day long!" She replied, tears falling from her cheeks.

Cassidy looked confused at her. At least she seemed to try and believe her. She shook her head and sighed.

"That doesn't make sense." She said. "The ranger told us that it was nearly impossible for an avalanche to happen here. And the only one who is capable of doing so would be you."

Cornelia looked shocked around her. It felt as if everything here was against her. The trees and brushes were berating her for creating an avalanche, Cassidy was highly suspicious of her and Hay Lin truly hated her, thinking that she created the avalanche. More tears ran over her cheeks and she turned briskly around. If they didn't want her compassion, fine. But they should not blame her for things that she didn't do. And if Hay Lin had the nerve to kill her family, then she would be sure that Hay Lin would become an orphan.

…

Days had passed after Cornelia's cowardly kill on her grandmother. Hay Lin had been mourning every day. How could Cornelia sink that low? She was supposed to be one of her best friends.  
>Another sweep of her brush went over the painting. She was busy with making a painting of her grandmother, in a way to honor her. At least she would prove that she hadn't forgotten her.<p>

In the past days, Irma and Taranee had visited her. Both were also sad about Yan Lin's passing, but only Irma shared her view. Taranee told her to look at it more objectively, but when Hay Lin had told her to do the same with Peter's case, she refused. Hay Lin knew very well why Taranee didn't want to look at it in another way. Because there was no other way, no other explanation. Cornelia had killed Yan Lin as Irma had killed Peter.

Hay Lin had learnt one thing out of this whole mess. You couldn't trust anyone. A lone tear ran over her cheek as she looked at her grandmother's unfinished picture. Her grandmother had always pleaded for trust and harmony among the Guardians, but they were far from it.

"I'm sorry, grandma."

…

With Halloween she wasn't allowed to go out alone, but during the day she was? Cornelia cursed silently in the cold winter air. Ever since Hay Lin had threatened her, she had been following Lillian everywhere. She had to make sure that her little sister was safe and that Hay Lin's threat was empty. After the accident on Halloween she couldn't afford her sister to get hurt. Not now when she wasn't able to protect herself.

To Cornelia's joy, Lillian stepped out of the pet store. She'd went to look for a new animal, but Cornelia saw that she hadn't found one yet. A conversation between her and her little sister came to mind.

_Flashback_

Lillian had been crying for days and even Cornelia had been sad about Napoleon's death. Perhaps she should have taken him along. It was all her fault.

Cornelia was reading a book in her room when her little sister came in.

"Cornelia?"

She looked up from her book and saw her little sister's sad eyes. She put the book down and patted beside her on the bed.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

Lillian sobbed a bit as she climbed on Cornelia's bed.

"I… I just wanted to hug you." She said shyly.

Cornelia wrapped her arms around her little sister and she noticed how Lillian's gaze went to the spot where Napoleon was found.

"You still miss him, don't you?"

Lillian nodded silently and Cornelia felt some tears falling on her arms. Cornelia hugged her sister closer.

"Maybe it would be better if you got yourself a new one?" She asked carefully.

Lillian shook her head slowly.

"I've been looking for a new cat ever since…But not one is as good as Napoleon. Maybe because he was a gift from Will…"

Cornelia sighed, slightly annoyed but caressed her little sister's hair. Napoleon had been a gift of Will and now, every trace of Will had disappeared.

_End Flashback_

Cornelia sighed in the cold air as she rounded another corner. Where was her little sister headed to now? She had been entering every pet shop in Heatherfield and she just left the last one. Was she heading home or to a friend?

"Cornelia!"

Cornelia stopped walking and straightened her back, turning around to look at a smiling Alchemy. Great, just what she did not need.

"Alchemy!" She said with a bittersweet smile. "How are you?"

Alchemy grinned back.

"Fine. Fine. Have you heard about all those deaths? I feel so terrible for the other girls." She said, her smile quickly falling. "I never thought Peter would drown."

Cornelia stopped smiling as well and shook her head, looking sadly.

"None of us expected it. Have you spoken to Taranee, Irma or Hay Lin?" She asked carefully.

Alchemy nodded.

"Hay Lin was crying over the phone and both Taranee and Irma became silent when I asked them about it. Understandable."

Cornelia nodded slowly. It was logical that they wouldn't say too much about it. They would blow their secret. She saw Alchemy looked compassionately at her and Cornelia shrugged it away. She couldn't use this kind of distraction. She had to keep an eye on Lillian and…

Her phone suddenly rang and she startled from the sudden sound. Alchemy looked surprised at her and even giggled while Cornelia shot her a playful glare and picking up her phone.

"Hello?"

"Corny. It's Irma. Dad called me and said that you had to go to the park asap. It was something important." Irma's voice said through the phone.

"I'll be right there." Cornelia replied, clicking off her phone and turning to Alchemy.

"Girl, gotta go. Duty calls." She said with a fake smile, but her mind and heart were raising.

Her little sister had disappeared from her eyesight and now Irma's dad wanted to see her in the park. Something was telling her that it was about Lillian and Cornelia prayed to God that it wasn't what she thought it was.

Alchemy just nodded and waved, while Cornelia turned on her heels and walked away as quickly as she could. Please God, let this not be about her sister. As she neared the park, she could see ambulances standing near it. Her legs started to run and she quickly entered the park, only to be stopped by the police.

"Sorry Ma'am, but no entrance." The policeman said.

"But I was called here by Mister Lair!" Cornelia protested.

Right at that moment she could see Tom Lair walking to her. His face was grim and Cornelia felt a knot in her stomach. No, please no. She thought. Anything but that.

"Cornelia." Mr. Lair said gravely. "I'm sorry to tell you this but. We've found your little sister. Dead."

Cornelia looked shocked at Mr. Lair, not believing what he was saying. She shook her head slowly, denying the horrifying thoughts to enter her mind. This was just a lie. She was on candid camera or something like that. Her little sister wasn't dead.

Mr. Lair helped her past the line and he led her to the crime scene. There Cornelia was hit by the ugly truth. Her sister was still laying on the ground, her eyes open and her mouth open.

Cornelia walked slowly at Lillian's body and let herself fall through her knees. She couldn't bring herself to touch the lifeless body of her little sister and she slowly felt how tears started to well up. What had she done to deserve this? Why did her little sister die? What had she done wrong?

Thoughts of regret filled her mind and she cursed herself for not spending more time with Lillian when they were younger. She could hear Mr. Lair talk to the coroner about the cause of death.

"It's curious." The coroner said. "It seems as if suddenly all air left her lunges without filling them again. As if they were sucked empty."

"Strange." Mr. Lair said. "And what did the two witnesses say who were closest to the victim?"

"Miss Lin says that she and Mr. Lyndon haven't seen nor heard the victim and that neither of them had called." The coroner said.

Cornelia stopped listening afterwards. Hay Lin had been here, with Eric. So she did sink that low as to take revenge. And with Eric no less. She got up from beside the body of her little sister and walked away. She left the park and as soon as she rounded a corner, she found them. They were looking at the park from a distance and when they noticed her, Hay Lin took a step back.

"Listen Cornelia. I know you think it was me, but I swear it wasn't me!" She said hastily, as if Cornelia would listen.

Cornelia used her telekinesis to pull Hay Lin towards her, almost knocking down Eric, and when Hay Lin was in range, Cornelia hit her hard on her cheek.

"How could you? Are you blinded by your hate?" She yelled angered at Hay Lin, who was now getting angered herself.

"I'm being blinded? You are! I know you killed my grandmother but blaming me for Lillian's death? I can't even kill a fly!" Hay Lin retorted, wanting to hit Cornelia back.

Cornelia blew her away with telekinesis and looked coldly at her.

"You should leave now before I make sure you'll leave in a coffin!" She yelled.

Hay Lin looked pale at Cornelia, but quickly grabbed Eric before teletransporting away. Cornelia felt how her feelings were overruling her and she fell on her knees, crying for the loss of her little sister and her trust in her friends.

…

Today was Christmas Day. A week ago Lillian was killed. By Hay Lin. Now Cornelia and Hay Lin were walking the same warpath as Irma and her. But something wasn't right. Though Taranee was a fervent believer that Irma had killed her brother, she could not believe that Hay Lin killed Lillian or that Cornelia killed Yan Lin. Even Cassidy had told her that she found it unlikely, even if there was enough evidence.

Taranee tossed again in her bed. Why were they breaking up? What was wrong with them? Why were they betraying one another?

She sighed again, knowing that the answers would not come to her if she stayed in bed and got up. The cold entered her room, but despite that she didn't shiver. Her fire kept her warm. She went to the bathroom, knowing that her parents were already downstairs, and dressed herself. When she was fully dressed, she went down to the kitchen and living room. Her parents were sitting at the table, waiting for her to arrive. They smiled at her, but Taranee could see that there was still grief for Peter. She smiled back and sat down.

"Merry Christmas." She said.

"Merry Christmas sweety." Her mother said, kissing her on her forehead.

"Merry Christmas." Her father said, grabbing for a bit of toast. "So, do you want to open your presents?"

Taranee smiled wryly and unconsciously looked at Peter's spot. She missed him claiming to be the first to unwrap all the presents. Or that he would eat most of the pancakes their mother made. She felt how tears were forming and masked it by nodding at her father and taking the first present.

She raised an eyebrow as she looked at the handwriting. This was not her parents, nor her brother's handwriting. She didn't recognize it at all. She slowly opened the small parcel, only finding a wooden craft box. Her symbol was engraved on it and she slowly opened it, only to gasp loudly and feel her rage increase. How could they? On Christmas no less!

She took the small paper which was in the box and got up, taking her coat and walking to the door.

"I'll be back in a few minutes." She said harshly before slamming the door.

As she walked through the cold and snowless streets of Heatherfield, she took the paper out one more time, reading it again.

It read:

'_Jingle Bells,_

_Betrayal smells,_

_Your stench is the worst,_

_Your family will die,_

_You will cry,_

_All to quench my thirst!'_

Taranee was seething. Irma had gone too far with her stupid jokes this time. First killing her brother and now this. She would pay dearly for this. She found herself walking to the park, knowing that it was a shortcut to Irma's house. What she didn't expect was to see Cornelia, Irma and Hay Lin walking towards her as well, all looking as if they could kill. Taranee didn't pay heed to their expressions and stared angrily at Irma, who glared back. When they were close enough to one another, Taranee held out the poem. But to her surprise, so did Irma. It was exactly the same handwriting and poem as hers. Now that she looked better, she could see that both Cornelia and Hay Lin were holding the same poem. So this meant that none of them had sent it. But then who did?

"Wait… You didn't send it?" Cornelia asked surprised.

"I thought you were so low as to send it. I mean, it was in a wooden carved box." Hay Lin said back, sounding highly confused.

"But if none of us sent it. Then who did?" Irma asked nervously.

Cornelia took her poem between her hands and read it again. It was clear to Taranee what it meant, but what would Cornelia say?

"I don't know who sent it, but I think his intentions are clear." She said after a brief silence. "We need to hide our families."

"Where Cornball?" Irma retorted. "In case you don't know, but I don't trust any of you."

At this Taranee had to agree. While they had been her closest friends, now they were the most untrustworthy people she'd ever known. What if they would know where her parents were? They could easily kill them while she wasn't there. The smile on Cornelia's face didn't give her much hope.

"I know exactly the place."

…

She looked through the window and saw how the parents along with the boyfriends of the Guardians entered Phobos's palace. It was as she foretold. She turned around and within seconds she was in the air above Will's castle. She spread her wings and glided over the winds to the castle. She swooped in through a window and saw that she entered the right room. The four newly restored thrones were standing high and mighty in the room and she was sitting on top of the highest throne. Elyon could see how her eyes were following her and Elyon quickly landed, letting herself morph back to her human form. She bowed down before looking up at her.

"And?"

Her voice was as cold as usual, but Elyon was sure she could see some hope spark in the mahogany brown eyes.

"They made their parents move to Phobos's castle, along with their boyfriends. Just like you said they would." Elyon replied calmly.

She nodded and Elyon could see how the old smirk was returning. Things were going again as she wished them to go and somewhere Elyon felt a fear for Will. How was it possible for someone to think of everything?

She could see that Will wanted to say something when sounds came from outside the room. It sounded as an argument and she turned around to see Cedric, Miranda and Caleb entering, all arguing about something.

They stopped immediately when they noticed her and Will watching. Miranda and Cedric nodded at her as a greeting while Caleb looked at Will. Elyon silently fumed as she took in his appearance. It was unfair that he'd gotten a new armor while she had not. But she was not so stupid as to complain about it to Will. She didn't want to sound childish.

"Now, bore me." Will said indifferently. "But please, why are you trying to give me a headache?"

"It's about Phobos. We've been waiting for nearly a year now. Why can't we just kill him right now?" Cedric hissed annoyed.

"Because Will might also want to take revenge on him." Caleb hissed angered at him.

Elyon rolled her eyes. Caleb always seemed to think of Will first. That guy was either obsessed or Will knew how to get into a guy's mind. She was pulled out of her thoughts as she heard Will chuckle. She looked up to see Will walk down from her throne.

"How considerate." She said. "Well, I don't really care about Phobos. You can have him for all I care."

Elyon raised an eyebrow. It was Phobos who gave Cornelia the idea of rebelling against her, so why did she let him go so easily? She then saw Will's dark eyes and she knew more was coming.

"But, you can only kill him under my rules."

Cedric hissed angered and glared at her.

"And why would we do that?" He hissed.

"Because else you'll lose your throne, you little worm." Will replied coldly.

Cedric kept glaring at her, but Will seemed to totally ignore him. She looked at Caleb and kissed him fiercely on his mouth. Elyon raised an eyebrow when she saw that Caleb transformed back because of the kiss. The poor boy was looking awestruck at Will while the latter licked her lips. Somewhere, Elyon had great respect for Will for being capable of controlling men like this.

"Warn the rebellion. Tell them that Cedric had figured out your identity when you were undercover. Cedric will try to break into the City with an army of images." She ordered.

Cedric raised his eyebrow.

"Why?"

"To kill two birds with one stone, Cedric." Elyon said, not knowing how she knew it. "To ruin both Phobos and the rebellion."

She could see how Will's eyes sparked with joy and she nodded at her. Elyon felt nervous and happy. Finally she would get her revenge on her brother and perhaps if Will let her, on her friends as well.

_**[A/N] Wow! What a chapter huh? I.T.C.H. is hating each other and they think they that one of the others has killed their family! Haha. If they only knew…. And what will happen now? Will the rebellion fall for the trick? Why did Will send that poem? Why did she want the parents in Metamoor? Find out next chapters!**_

_**REVIEW!**_


	13. Chapter 12 One to rule them all

**Chapter 12 One to rule them all**

He looked anxiously behind him. He couldn't shake off the feeling that he was being followed. But perhaps he was going paranoid. Rumors about a third party in the war or that Phobos knew where their rebel base was, just made him scared. For years he'd been a spy for the rebellion so he was used of living in fear, but it was as if something dark was lurking around.

Vathek sighed relieved when he could see the pile of thrash where an entrance to the rebel base was. He could take his guard duty and he would be safe. He looked around him and saw no one. He stepped towards the old barrel and kicked it open. He climbed inside and walked down the stairs.

Drake was standing at the guard spot and grinned when he saw Vathek.

"Vathek! I'm glad you're here. Caleb just arrived and I wanted to listen to his stories." Drake said as he made attempts to leave.

Vathek raised an eyebrow. Caleb returned? Normally he would be glad to hear this and go to greet him, but Caleb's behaviour had been worrisome. Caleb did not spontaneously leave. He did not renounce his position to give it to perhaps the worst choice for a leader after Drake. Though Vathek had to admit that Aldarn made a pretty good leader. He hadn't been rash and he even made several good decisions about raids on the food storages of Phobos.

Drake looked inquisitively at him and Vathek shook his head. Caleb would leave the base through this exit anyway and perhaps then Vathek could have a private conversation with him. He just hoped that he could find out what was wrong with Caleb before bad things would happen.

**…**

His eyes narrowed when he saw Vathek entering the rebel base. For years he'd been searching for the damned place, only to find out that it had been under his nose all this time. Literally under his nose. It was a mystery to him how the rebels found the Infinite City, but he could at least fake an attack from here and pay a nice visit to his old friend.

He pulled his cloak tighter around him and shivered slightly. He had to give Caleb some time to scare the rebels. Then he could come with his illusionary army. It was good that magic was so untrained in Metamoor or the rebellion would see through the illusions, but now they would easily fall for the fear that he'll cause.

His gaze went to the dark castle that was looming over the city. For years it had been his home. He'd been Phobos's right hand and general and Phobos shows his respect by listening to a blonde bimbo and plotting to kill him. Oh, how he would regret it. Though Phobos should be grateful towards Will. It was her who had forced him to wait a week before departure and she'd forced him to walk to the city. No flying, no teletransporting. All to ensure that the Guardians would think their parents were safe and that Phobos or the rebellion wouldn't suspect a thing. But today, today everything would end. He would get his revenge on Phobos and he would become King. And no one would stop him.

The thought that this was all thanks to the Guardian… their leader was being repressed by his feeling of self-loathing. When he'd taken her in he'd thought that she would be a valuable slave. Now she was ruling over him and he couldn't do anything but obey. He wasn't saying that he was scared of her, even if shivers ran over his spine when she spoke, but he was merely impressed by her. Nothing more.

The great clock rang in the distance. Due to the clouds which were constantly hanging over the city Cedric only guessed it was 6 o'clock in the evening. He grinned as he prepared his magic.

"Ready or not Caleb, here I come." He hissed, as he transformed into his snake form.

**…**

"You're sure he recognized you?"

Caleb nodded fiercely. Aldarn cursed under his breath. Caleb could not return to the western cities and thus the rebellion would lose the information from the secluded villages. He had to know more about this Warrior Queen, but Caleb couldn't find anymore about it, or so he said.

Aldarn looked almost hopelessly at Caleb, who was sitting relaxed in his own chair. How could he be so calm? Knowing Caleb he already had a back-up plan, but Aldarn couldn't lose his face. Caleb had made him the new leader of the rebellion and he had to prove him that he wasn't mistaken.

"I'm sure. He attacked me but I managed to give him the slip. That big old snake can never catch me." Caleb replied, a cocky smirk on his lips.

Aldarn sighed annoyed.

"Caleb, you need to be serious. Without you there, we lose a valuable source of information." He said annoyed.

Caleb nodded and looked pensively at Aldarn. Aldarn could read it in his eyes. What are you going to do now? Was this a test from Caleb? To prove if he was worthy enough to lead the rebellion? Caleb hadn't been here when he made several decisions that improved the living conditions of the rebellion and the villagers. Wasn't that proof enough?

Aldarn was racking his brain, forcing it to come with an idea, but the harder he tried the more his brain rebelled and stayed blank. How was he supposed to make up for this loss of information?

The sound of rumbling broke his concentration and he and Caleb rushed outside of the tent. Rebels came running from all over the place to see Vathek crawling from the entrance. He was pale and he winced as he tried to stand up. The dust on him and the newly formed bruises only meant one thing. And Aldarn prayed to the Gods that it wasn't what he thought it was.

"Cedric. Cedric has found the Infinite City." Vathek coughed scared. "He has an army standing ready and he is now trying to break in!"

Rebels around him started to mumble and panic. Aldarn felt how his hope was dripping away. Cedric was literally standing at the door and all they could do was wait. They were sitting ducks, ripe for the slaughter. He watched how mothers embraced their scared children, husbands hugging their crying wives. Everything was going out of control. And he was losing it as well. What should he do? Panic as well? Scream?

"We should attack."

He turned shocked to Caleb, who was looking serious at him. Was he insane? What was he saying? To attack Cedric and his army now would be the same as surrendering directly to Phobos. It was suicide. And Caleb, as a former rebel leader, would not wish for the death of the rebellion, would he?

"Phobos's army is standing outside our door." Caleb whispered to him. "His castle is barely protected. We can take him down for good."

Aldarn looked concerned and even scared at Caleb, but Caleb only answered him with a challenging look. Was he really testing him? Aldarn noticed how Caleb's eyes sparked strangely and slowly but surely, Aldarn started to feel the same. He felt sure that they could take Phobos down. He had weakened himself immensely with sending his army to the rebellion. Now was the time to end this war once and forever.

He turned around, looking at the panicking crowd in front of him. While everyone was panicking, he felt strangely calm. Maybe it was Caleb's presence and determination that gave him the strength to do what was right. He gathered his courage and took a deep breath.

"Listen! Listen to me!" He said loudly, gaining the attention of the panicking rebels. "We can wait. But Phobos will be more prepared and we will be weaker!"

The rebels were silent and looking scared at one another and at him. Aldarn felt his determination rising and continued.

"How many guards do you think he has out there? 5000? Maybe more? We have to attack the castle!"

Murmurs filled the Infinite City. Rebels were scared and unsure if they should listen to him, but Aldarn pressed on.

"While we still have the strength. His defenses are reduced by how many goons he has out there. Now we have a chance to end this senseless war once and for all. How many of us have died because of Phobos's tyranny? How long have we waited for a moment like this? Now that he has deliberately weakened himself, we have the opening we've longed for. Now is the time to end Phobos's reign! The Princess will return to us and we will live a better life! For a free Metamoor! For the Light!"

The more he spoke, the more people stopped panicking and listened to him. People stared at him with fear or hope in their eyes. The feeling of importance fell heavy on his shoulders but it also filled him with pride. The rebels would finally end this war by a mistake of Phobos.

**…**

He had to repress a smirk as the rebellion was being fooled. He even had to cover a laugh when Aldarn praised the Light. The Light had been dimmed months ago and there was no chance that it was coming back.

He watched in silent amazement how Will's plan was going flawlessly. The rebels were collecting their weapons and polishing their armor. The only thing that worried him was how he was supposed to sneak away from the rebellion without creating suspicion. He didn't want the rebellion to know about the scheme, but he also didn't want to miss the opportunity to end Phobos's life.

Caleb managed to sneak away from Aldarn, as the latter kept repeating his encouraging words. Will was right, Aldarn had turned into a pretty good leader after all. Too bad he didn't have enough time to fully bloom. Time was running short, for him, the rebellion, for Phobos and for the Guardians.

He stumbled past many running rebels, who were all shouting battle cries, or greeting him, as they passed by. Caleb nodded grimly at them and went to the armory, hoping to find it empty or at least find an opening to slip away. When he was near the armory he took a left turn, walking towards another exit, when a hand caught his shoulder.

He turned quickly around, but found that his knives weren't where they were supposed to be. He looked frustrated up, only to find a very concerned Vathek looking at him. Of course. He'd forgotten that Vathek had a lot of experience and he would see that this was a suicidal action.

"Caleb." He said urgently. "You have to stop Aldarn and the rebels. It doesn't matter that Phobos has 5000 men outside our base. He still has over 9000 men at the castle. We're not even with a full 3000. This is suicide."

Caleb noticed that they were alone. The rebels were all massing around another entrance and never bothered with the one closest to them. A familiar cold washed over him and he noticed how Vathek shivered unconsciously. He was going to get away with it, but not before Vathek would know the truth.

A smirk crossed his face and he saw Vathek looking suspiciously at him.

"My dear friend, what makes you think that I will stop our leader?" He said calmly.

Vathek seemed to catch on and roared in anger. Caleb felt how Vathek grabbed him by his throat and held him in the air. Breathing wasn't yet a problem, but Caleb had the nasty feeling that Vathek would try to end his life. He just hoped that Will wasn't planning on killing him.

"Are you insane?" Vathek bellowed at him. "Why do you want to risk the lives of thousands of people?"

Despite the danger that was holding him by his throat, Caleb scowled. He saw a glimmer of fear in Vathek's eyes, but it only made him angrier. He had been risking his life for years for a bunch of fools who betrayed him easily. Why would he care about them, if they never bothered to accept him?

"They betrayed me with Aldarn." He spat. "They are no better than Phobos."

He felt how Vathek loosened his grip a bit, before grabbing his throat more forcefully. His eyes were blazing with anger, but Caleb felt no fear. Vathek should have known that this would happen. Life only granted you a few people who could be trusted and the rebellion did not belong to those people.

"They did not betray you!" He glowered. "You betrayed them. Us! You should be ashamed of yourself. Now you're just a minion of Phobos."

Caleb spat at him. How dare he say such a thing? Him, a minion of Phobos. He would never fall that deep. Phobos was nothing but a cold blooded tyrant. He only killed people because it pleased him. He would never save anyone. Will on the other hand had been saving people for as long as he could remember, but the world betrayed her. She was hurt and he would protect her from them and if she deemed someone unworthy of life, then he would agree.

"Says one to know one." Caleb sneered back, feeling how Vathek increased his strength on his grip.

"I never thought you would sink this low, Caleb." Vathek hissed. "Now you will die and I will stop the rebellion of following the advice of a minion of Phobos."

"I prefer you calling me by my name or title. Being referred to as 'Phobos' is so demeaning."

Caleb grinned viciously at Vathek, as the latter released him and looked startled around. Will was standing behind him, her arms crossed and her wings neatly spread, looking menacing as well as stunning. He saw how Vathek took a step back.

"G-Guardian? But… They said you had died!" He said utterly confused.

Caleb snickered while Will simply shook her head. He slowly walked to her and to his utter delight she grabbed him, kissing him on his lips. Her soft cherry red lips felt warm against his and the taste of salt prickled his tongue. He felt how her tongue slipped past his lips and how it played with his. He felt how the power, which she had given him weeks before, was fueling him once again and how the armor took place around his body. He tried not to whimper as her tongue left his mouth, or how she looked completely uninterested back at Vathek, who looked as if he'd been hit by a Hoogong.

"Wh-What?" Vathek stuttered confused.

"My dear Vathek." Will said maliciously. "Everything is possible these days."

"You… You're the third party in this war!" Vathek said suddenly, raising his fist at Will.

Caleb stepped forward, blocking Vathek's fist with the sword which he'd gotten with his armor. Caleb remembered how strong Vathek was and he wondered how strong he was now as he could easily block Vathek's fist. Will sighed softly.

"It took you a while to figure out." She said. "But I can't have you run to the rebellion and tell them about my little plan. That would make things more difficult than they already are."

Caleb felt Will slightly touching his shoulder and he spun away, leaving Vathek wide open for Will. Will unsheathed her own sword, which Caleb could recognize as a sword Aketon would have made, and pierced effortlessly through Vathek's gut. But Vathek would not give up. Not that Caleb was surprised. Vathek was a strong and big guy and Will loved to make her opponents suffer before she killed them.

With a second swipe, Will decapitated Vathek. A small pang ran through his heart as he saw the body of one of his old friends fall to the ground, Vathek's still surprised look on his face as his head rolled further away. With a wave of her hand, the body disappeared and she looked annoyed at him.

"You could not leave the rebellion without making a fuss, could you?" She complained, but he knew she was just playing.

He simply shrugged and sheathed his sword. He walked to Will and wrapped his arm around her, only to feel a slight electric warning.

"Forget it Rebel Boy." She said. "We're going the old-fashioned way. Cedric, Miranda and Elyon are waiting."

He sighed. He had the feeling that he had to beg again for some time tonight. He just hoped she wouldn't be so cruel as to make him beg in front of the staff. He had too much pride to stoop that low.

The familiar grasp of magic embraced him and he looked at an utterly dull looking Will. He couldn't help but to smirk.

"At least a part of your vengeance will be fulfilled tonight." He said, making her smile a little.

Her smile would make this day perfect.

**…**

He sighed. Not only did he had to watch over the family of not only his soon to be wife, but also the families and boyfriends of the other Guardians. Sometimes he really wondered how Cornelia could stay with those girls. Other than power houses, she had no reason to be with them. Perhaps he should propose a power transfer ritual to her. He didn't think she would mind. Especially not after the curious betrayal that happened among the four of them.

"Hey Phobos. Come and check this."

He tried to keep his dignity and looked at the young boy the Air Guardian was dating, Eric if his memory did not fail him. Now that he was thinking of it, Eric wasn't looking too shabby. Perhaps he could coy him into joining his army. Having someone with brains wouldn't be too bad and he could always remove his tongue if he was too annoying.

Eric was pointing at the window, where his other guests were standing as well. They were all looking outside and according to their looks, Phobos guessed that there was something that was concerning them.

He walked slowly to the window, only three steps behind Eric. As he came closer to the window, he could see why his guests were looking so scared. He could see the rebels coming at the castle. Right at that moment, the horn was blown and he could see how his own army was busy preparing themselves. He wasn't really concerned about the rebels. Though he did wonder why they were suddenly attacking him, he did not think it was important. They would all die today anyway. They were merely relieving him from a source of annoyance with their suicide act.

"Why are they attacking, Prince Phobos?"

Phobos smiled friendly at Cornelia's mother. At least she knew what courtesy meant. She was probably the reason why Cornelia had manners.

"Do not worry, my dear friends. There are always people who oppose my way of ruling and sadly they think that they can change it with force. Of course I'll try to capture them and imprison them, but in these fights it's possible that they get killed." He said calmly.

"That's ridiculous." The Water Guardian's father said. "They should try and talk first. You seem like a reasonable man, so I don't see why they would resort to weapons."

Phobos sighed. Some people were better left in the dark, but it was fatiguing.

"I don't know." He lied. "But they will regret it anyway."

Right at that moment a crash was heard. He quickly looked through the window and saw how a catapult had destroyed a part of his wall. He sighed annoyed and turned to his guests.

"Perhaps it's better for you to go to the combined rooms I put up for you? There you will be safe and you won't have to face the horrors from the battle below." He said as he gestured to the big doors of his throne room.

His guests slowly walked away from the window, still mumbling about it but also agreeing with the fact that it was better for them to leave these scenes. They had already suffered too much and even if Phobos did not really care about their personal feelings, they did help him to get rid of some annoyances.

To his silent annoyance, Matt stayed a bit behind. Phobos could hear how the group was standing right around the corner, waiting for him. Phobos looked questioningly at Matt, who only gazed back at the fights below.

"Why would the rebels attack now? The girls aren't here." He said.

Phobos sighed and shrugged. It was true that the Guardians had only visited once since they had dropped off their parents. The four of them still seemed to be hating the other, but they could at least manage to come through a portal at the same time. Perhaps because the portals were so rare nowadays.

"I don't know. The rebels must have gone desperate." He said, looking through the window. "But go to the others. I have to focus on the fight."

Matt nodded and walked away. Phobos could hear them walk through the hall outside his throne room and he softly rubbed his temples. Why were these things so complicated? If his sister hadn't disappeared, he would have gotten rid of the rebellion a long time ago.

"Hello brother."

**…**

He didn't like it. Why was the rebellion attacking while the Guardians were supposed to be their ticket to go? Irma had told him that the rebellion would do whatever they said, but then why were they attacking? It wasn't normal. None of the girls would order the rebellion to attack the castle for the sole reason that their parents were here. Any attack would bring them into danger.

Matt softly wondered if this was the doing of this mysterious third party. Maybe they had infiltrated the rebellion and managed to convince them to attack the palace. If this was the truth then he had to find a way to warn the girls. Their plans were in danger.

"Isn't that…Blunk?"

Matt looked up from his thoughts to find Blunk standing in the middle of the hall. He ran almost panicky at them and went to hug him. Matt felt disgusted as he felt the sticky, slimy skin of the Passling against his own and he had to stop himself from hurling as Blunk's stench entered his nose.

He saw how the others were looking slightly disgusted at him, while Irma's father looked suspiciously at the Passling.

"Blunk. Urgh. What are you doing here?" Matt asked, slightly concerned about the fact that the Passling was here.

If he was here, he would see the girls' parents and he would run off to the rebellion and tell them about the girls' alliance with Phobos. Man, why were these things so difficult? How was he supposed to make the Passling believe that they were safe here?

Blunk jumped out of his arms and waved frantically around, looking hurried.

"Parents! Boyfriends! Come quick! Guardian waiting for you!" He said as he hurried forwards, to the more empty rooms of the castle.

Matt raised his eyebrow. So the girls did manage to get here. But why did they order an attack on the castle? It didn't make any sense. Cornelia loved Phobos and even if the girls were currently hating each other, they wouldn't steep so low as to kill all of them, including their own parents?

He looked concerned at the others, who were also looking suspiciously at the Passling. It was true that Blunk never lied to them and always helped them. His presence alone indicated that a portal had opened. So perhaps the girls were here to rescue them. Maybe the rebels had gone out of control.

"Let's go. If Blunk says that the girls are waiting, then you can be sure that it's dangerous to stay here." He said, getting nods from the rest.

He quickly followed the little Passling, the others close behind. He could feel that Eric and Nigel were anxious about the whole situation and that the parents were worried about their daughters' safety. He on the other hand felt rather calm, but that could also be because he was rather used to these kinds of situations.

"Dude, do you really think we're safe?" Eric whispered to him.

Matt gave him a wry smile.

"Sure. The girls know what they do." He said calmly.

Eric just nodded, though he did not look really convinced. He really needed to see Hay Lin in action before his mind would be put to rest.

Matt saw how Blunk ran into a room and he nodded to the rest. This would probably be their first time teletransporting and he gave them all a reassuring grin. They were safe anyway.

He walked into the room as well, yet the feeling of danger immediately clawed at him. The room was dimly lit, not strange for a castle, but there was something cold lingering in the air. He could see Blunk sitting on the ground in the middle of the room. His back was turned to him.

"Blunk, where are the girls?" He asked, his heart beating irrationally hard.

Blunk turned his head, a strange smile appearing on his face. From the shadows behind him a hand came, petting the Passling's head. Matt's eyes widened as he realized that this was a trick. He turned around, hoping to get out of the room, but a sudden gust of wind closed it.

The room dimmed even more and gasps came from his friends and the families of the Guardians. The Passling had betrayed them, but to who?

"What's going on here?" Elizabeth Hale demanded.

"Always so demanding." A cold voice said, making Matt shiver.

This voice… It wasn't possible. It couldn't be true.

"But then again, like mother like daughter, right?"

From the shadows behind Blunk a woman appeared. Matt felt how his heart stopped as her cherry red hair got reflected by the small line of light. The small parts of her outfit that were visible made his throat go dry. She looked hotter than he could remember. He could hear the rustle of wings and he truly wondered how this was possible. She was supposed to be dead.

More gasps filled the room and the girl who ought to be dead snickered softly, a sound that made him shudder. There was something off about her. She was no longer the girl he could remember.

He unconsciously took a step back when she approached, her fingers lacing around his chin, her mahogany eyes burning with hatred. She was planning to take revenge. How was it possible she survived?

Matt's breathing became shallow and he felt how her fingers traced his jaw. What was she thinking? He saw how she diverted her attention to the people behind them.

"Will?"

A new snicker filled the room and Matt was sure that he was to pass out any second now.

"Surprise." She said, her voice colder than ice. "Now let's surprise your daughters as well, shall we?"

With that he could feel how a strong magic knocked him to the ground. He heard how his friends and the Guardians' families moaned and passed out and he looked faintly up. Will was standing over him, her grin eviler than the Devil himself.

She crouched in front of him and kissed him sensually. He whimpered as she broke the kiss and spat next to him.

"See it as a last time kiss." She said, her humor shining through.

"What are you planning to do?" He asked her weakly, as he felt how most of his body was already succumbing to the numbness that would make him fall unconscious.

Her smile instilled the last ounce of fear in him before he fainted.

"All in time, my dear, dear heart."

**…**

He had been surprised, to say the least. Matt hadn't left or his sister was standing there, in the middle of his throne room. Her smile was taunting him and a small jolt of anger coursed through him. How dare she show herself after a year of disappearance? The wench better had to have an explanation to why he couldn't assume to absolute power months earlier.

Despite his feelings, Phobos managed to smile concerned.

"Elyon! Where have you been?" He asked, his voice sickly sweet and concerned. "I've been looking all over for you!"

Elyon giggled stupidly and Phobos had to refrain himself from shooting at her. The chance that she'd discovered how to use a portion of her powers was too big, making her a threat to him if he were to attack her.

"Me?" She said, her voice sounding strange. "I've been out with some friends."

He raised an eyebrow. Elyon didn't sound like she used to. She had been giddy and giggly. She'd been naïve. Now she sounded so sure of herself, but she also seemed to have lost her innocence. What had happened to her this past year that made him almost get a strange feeling of fear whenever he looked in her pale silver eyes?

His smile did not waver as he took some steps to his 'beloved' sister. At least she was back and he could still manage to pull off the coronation ceremony. Her powers would finally serve a higher purpose.

"Friends?" He said, trying to sound interested. "Did you bring them along so I could meet them? It's only proper for an older brother to ensure his little sister's safety."

Elyon smiled sweetly at him and Phobos was glad that he would be rid of her face within a few days. She didn't seem to think he was evil, nor that he was plotting to steal her powers. People could be so easily manipulated.

"But brother, you already know them." She said sweetly.

Phobos felt a chill going over his spine and he couldn't react quickly enough. Elyon blasted him in his stomach, shooting him against something made of steel. He tried to struggle up when someone behind him took him in a firm grip. He gasped for air while his sister slowly walked to him.

"I trusted you." She hissed at him, making him realize that she'd found out. "My only family wanting to kill me."

He didn't bother to see who her lackey was and glared at her. How could she have known?

"What are you saying?" He said, though his voice was already icy.

A hissing laugh filled his ears and he managed to look aside, finding a chair deglamouring itself, revealing Cedric. His eyes were filled with hatred and malice and Phobos realized where Cedric and Miranda had been all this time.

"You?" He said surprised.

"You should really watch out at what time of the day you decide to get cozy with the enemy, my Prince." Cedric hissed. "Especially when a certain blonde likes to yap about your secrets."

His eyes widened in surprise. They had been listening in. There was no other way for them to know. He heard another girlish voice in the room and found Miranda appearing next to Cedric.

"If I were you I wouldn't move too much. Caleb is very eager to snap your neck you know." She said with a malicious grin. "But I hope he'll kindly let you go. Cause it wouldn't be fair if he had all the fun."

His heart was racing when he felt how the person who had been holding him, pushed him to the ground. He managed to catch himself and looked right in two blazing emerald eyes. His throat went dry and he immediately reacted by throwing a strong magical bolt at the boy, only for Elyon to shield him. He didn't notice it and his eyes went up and down the rebel leader's body. He seemed a lot stronger and the armor he was wearing was worrying him. The golden sign was the one of the Guardian leader, the one who was supposed to be dead.

He shook those thoughts away as he quickly rolled aside for Miranda's webbing. While he'd been thinking, Miranda and Cedric had transformed and they were ready to kill him.

Again he dodged a string of webbing, followed by Cedric's tail. He saw too late that Caleb stormed at him, his fist raised. He felt how Caleb's, with metal coated hand hit him in his stomach, making him gasp for air. Cedric was quickly to follow by slamming him with his tail.

He flew through the room, but Elyon stopped his fall by catching him and throwing him back at them. As he landed on the ground he could clearly feel that some ribs were broken. He felt a crushing pain in his hand and found Miranda stomping on it. He used his other to blast her away with energy, but Elyon shielded again.

His heart was throbbing hard against his chest and his lunges were desperate for air. He felt how his attacks were draining his energy, but he had to continue. He was not planning to bow for these low life creatures.

"Maybe you should have thought twice before betraying us for that blonde bimbo." Miranda hissed furiously, using her webbing to sling him against his throne.

Phobos used a bit of his energy to stop the fall. It was obvious to him why they were here. They were using the rebellion as a coverage to kill him. They had been the third party of this war, but he was not planning to lose so easily. He grabbed a vial next to his throne. It was a potion that would allow him to use his magic without him running low on energy. It was the energy of the people of Meridian which he'd been storing for years. He quickly drank the potion, feeling how his sore muscles were easing up.

"You fools." He said, turning around and blasting Caleb with his magic, hitting him before Elyon could shield him. "I will not lose to mere ants. You were all meant to die, one way or another. And this is just an opportunity I cannot resist."

"You're a child Phobos." His sister sneered at him. "Four on one is impossible for you to win."

Funny. If he could recall correctly, she was the younger one. The naïve child who wanted to make the world a better place. At least he had a vision to rule Metamoor with an iron fist.

"And here I was, thinking that you were the image of all that was good, my dear baby sister." He sneered back, clouding her face with anger.

She was hurting him because of hurt pride and lost trust. Caleb was obviously doing it for a 'Free Metamoor'. Cedric was only trying to claim the power himself, which Phobos knew would happen one day and Miranda was merely following Cedric. They would lose to the hungry masses out there within seconds. None of them could lead. All would fail and he would show that by killing them one by one.

He shot a new bolt of magic at Caleb, only for Elyon to shield him. Meanwhile, Phobos ran at Miranda, hoping to get a free blast at her, but Miranda blasted him with magic from her front paws. He looked dazed at her. Since when was she capable of doing that?

He felt how Elyon's magic took a hold of him and he tried to break out, when he noticed she was draining the effects of his potion. Without it he would had to rely on his life energy.

Before he could find a way to break himself free, Caleb punched him again in the guts, making him cough up some blood. Cedric followed by hitting him to the ground and Phobos felt something crack in his legs.

His breathing was raspy and his vision was blurred. They were torturing him. They weren't killing him, at least not yet. He couldn't move his legs anymore. He was left at their mercy, for he had no longer the strength to use his magic to fly.

He noticed how Caleb, Elyon, Miranda and Cedric were closing in on him and he waited until they were close enough. Then he let himself burst with a magical energy, blasting the reckless fools away from him. He knew it was a sad attempt to keep himself alive, but he had to create an opening. He used his magic to heal his legs enough to be capable of carrying him and tried to teletransport away. He felt how his magic was bringing him to safety, when suddenly something intervened. It forced him to teletransport to the entrance of his throne room. He looked dazed up, for he had teletransported himself to the ground. He was looking right in the face of someone who had to be dead. The black raffled skirt and the raven black wings were an indication that she had to be dead. Only angels wore such wings.

"You are dead." He breathed confused.

Her smile was a ghost of what he could remember. No, he was wrong. This wasn't the Guardian leader, but the Devil, here to collect him.

"You will be." She whispered to him as she grabbed him by his collar.

**…**

She breathed annoyed as she watched Will holding Phobos with ease. She could see how a dark purple aura enveloped Phobos and how the aura slowly went to Will. Phobos tried to struggle loose, but as the aura left him, he fell unconscious in her grip.

Will was slightly glowing when she threw him in front of Cedric. Elyon noticed how Cedric was glaring at her and Will merely scoffed.

"Shame on you." She said, her voice holding sarcasm. "He nearly escaped."

Cedric scoffed as well, sweeping Phobos to the wall with his tail. Will chuckled slightly and Elyon looked confused at the two.

"Dear Cedric, I knew you wanted his powers, but why? You wouldn't use it anyway." Will continued, while waving her hand to Phobos's unconscious body.

It flew up and hang in midair. Elyon felt how her gaze was directed to her brother's body. How she wished she could kill him, but they hadn't decided yet. Who was the one who was obliged to kill Phobos? Elyon knew Cedric wanted to kill him, but that's because they had some trouble in the past. Miranda had no real reason, except that Phobos wanted to kill her for no apparent reason. Caleb was only fighting for Will's honor and she wanted to end his life because he did not only lie to her but also tried to kill her and steal her powers. So in a way, she was the one who had the right to end her brother's life and no one else.

"Now… Who wants to hang him?"

She looked confused at Will, who was eyeing each of them individually. Her look was bored and in the distance the sounds of war were still hearable.

"Hang him?" She asked, not completely understanding.

She thought that they could decide how to kill him, not who. Will merely shrugged. She walked leisurely to the window and looked bored outside.

"Well, if we want to claim the throne, you better kill him quickly or there will be no people to rule. Besides, I want to leave a present to my friends." She said, pointing at the fights below.

She clenched her fists. She had been planning of slowly removing body parts, making him suffer before he would die. This would just kill him, without any further suffering.

She saw how Will walked to her and patted her on her shoulder.

"I know you want to make him suffer, but he won't wake up anytime soon. Besides, you have to prepare to receive a dear friend of yours."

She then turned around, looking up at Phobos's body and waving at it.

"But if no one wants to…"

Elyon found her gaze back on her brother and saw how his hair was wrapping around his neck.

"What are you doing?" Cedric hissed angered.

It was obvious to Elyon that Cedric wanted to hurt her brother more than this. And she agreed. He hadn't suffered enough in her eyes.

"Hanging him with his own hair." Will replied airily, making Elyon shudder a bit.

Hanging had never been one of her favorite methods to kill, but hanging someone by his own hair was just plain gross. It didn't help that the thorns of the thick vines that were hanging above Phobos's throne would do for an excellent place to be hung.

"You said we could kill him." Cedric hissed angered.

Elyon felt a slight twinge of annoyance when Will waved his anger away. Was she betraying them?

"Well, if you want to, then go ahead." She said, making Phobos's body drop to the ground. "If you need me I'll be at the balcony. Just hurry up."

With that she left, leaving the four of them looking flabbergasted at their leader. Why was she so confusing at times?

Elyon looked unsure at the others. Who had the right to hang him? She looked back at her brother's unconscious body. Boredom suddenly took control of her. It wasn't fun killing him if he was unconscious. She sighed and turned around, intending to follow Will.

"You guys can have him." She said indifferently. "I'm done playing."

**…**

What was wrong? There were way too many of Phobos's army. At least half of them should still be near the Infinite City's entrance. Was it just a trap?

No, Aldarn refused to believe that. They were winning, he just knew it. He knew Caleb was somewhere, damaging Phobos's supplies. Vathek had to be somewhere, throwing many men to their deaths. Drake had been fighting by his side not two minutes ago, so Aldarn knew things were going okay. Their catapult had managed to create an opening in the castle walls. It was just a matter of time before they broke in and then Phobos would have lost.

He threw his sword in a Lurden and pulled out some daggers to block an attack from an incoming guard. He tried to push the guard away when a glider came and crashed in the guard.

Aldarn grinned as he helped his comrade up, but the rebel looked terrified at him.

"Aldarn!" He said, his voice quivering with fear. "There is trouble!"

Aldarn felt his heart stop and he looked concerned at the man. The man in question was breathing heavily.

"What's wrong?" Aldarn asked him urgently.

"Ph-Phobos." The man said. "He used the forbidden magic."

Aldarn paled visibly and he started t shake the man. That could not be. To use the forbidden magic one had to sell his soul and Aldarn had always thought that even Phobos was scared for the Gods of the Underworld. Everyone knew what would happen with a warlock.

"You can't just exclaim those things!" He said scared. "Phobos turning into a warlock is impossible! Even he is scared for the Gods!"

The man stopped Aldarn from shaking him and looked angrily at him.

"So you're saying that I'm making this up?" He said angered and scared. "I did see the Guardian Leader, completely dressed as a Fallen Angel. And she is supposed to be dead!"

Aldarn felt how the color in his face drained and he swallowed some bile that had come up. This was impossible. The Guardian Leader? Resurrected as a Fallen Angel? How twisted had Phobos become?

Fear took control of him and he tried to grab for his horn. With it he could warn the rebellion and force them to retreat. They would still be alive and perhaps they could call the Guardians for help next time. A warlock was too dangerous for the rebellion to fight. But as he grabbed for the horn a bubble of green magic enveloped him. He yelled in shock and saw how everyone, guards, Lurdens and rebels were lifted into the air.

The clouds above the castle were swirling strangely and he could clearly see the face of the lost Princess in the clouds. Aldarn could see that this spectacle was repeated over a distance of at least twelve miles. His heart was racing. What was going on? Did the Princess side with Phobos once more? Was she going to kill them? The Princess wouldn't, she was too good of heart, right? According to Caleb's stories she couldn't hurt a fly. Aldarn just hoped that she was not too badly brainwashed by her brother.

The cloud like image of the Princess smiled at them, but it gave Aldarn shivers. It was the same smile as the Prince would give whenever he had an evil plan. What had happened?

"Citizens of Metamoor." Her voice boomed. "Prince Phobos is dead."

Instead of cheers of joy, a silence ruled over the Plains. Nobody had thought that the war would end like this. Everyone could feel that something bad was coming. Aldarn watched anxiously as the Princess gave them a fake pout.

"What?" She asked, her voice ominous. "Are you not happy?"

She suddenly giggled and the image of her hand appeared, hitting her softly against the forehead.

"Oh, silly me. You all knew he worked with Guardians."

Gasps filled the Plains, from the rebels as well as the guards. Aldarn's eyes widened. The Guardians working for Phobos? But they were meant to be their saviors. The Princess had to be lying.

"Gasps?" The Princess's voice boomed. "So you did not know how they tried to get rid of their leader so that the Earth Guardian could mate with Phobos without getting any trouble? You did not know that the Earth Guardian and the remaining three were planning to rule Metamoor together with my late brother? Well, that's a shock."

What was going on here? Why was the Princess talking like this? According to Caleb, she was the best friend of the Earth Guardian. The Earth Guardian would surely not try to kill her? The Earth Guardian even risked her life to get the Princess back, so why was the Princess so blaming?

Another thing that worried him was the fact that she said that the Guardians tried to kill their leader. If you added the fact that one of the glider's had seen the Guardian Leader as a Fallen Angel made things even worse. Aldarn could easily pinpoint that the word tried meant that the Guardians had failed in killing their leader, which only meant that she was still alive. And she acquired a form that made her look like a Fallen Angel. In other words, she had embraced the darkness.

Sweat pearled down Aldarn's temples and he started to bang against the magical bubble, but it was in vain. He could not manage to break free from it. He saw how some of the rebels started to hug their knees, no longer knowing what to do. Everyone was panicking, but it was controlled. Aldarn looked back at the image of the Princess and he could see her smile.

"But don't worry. We'll make sure that the Guardians will get what they deserve." The Princess continued, making Aldarn pray to every God and Goddess he knew that she meant the royal 'we'.

"For as you know, I am the true heir to the throne of Metamoor, but I personally think I'm not that cut out for the job. Therefore there shall not be one Queen, but three and there will be one King."

Aldarn was surprised that his heart was still beating. His stomach was acting up and his head was fuzzy. Three Queens and one King? Aldarn feared for the wellbeing of not only the civilians, but whole Metamoor. He had the feeling that things were going to be worse than ever.

"May I present to you, King Cedric of the South." The Princess said, briefly disappearing from sight. Instead the image of Cedric appeared, smirking at all of them.

Aldarn had trouble breathing. Cedric? A King? Metamoor was doomed. He wondered what they'd done to displease the Gods and Goddesses to deserve this.

"Queen Miranda of the East." The voice of the Princess said.

The image of Cedric disappeared and the image of the female shapeshifter came into view. Her smile was a devious as Cedric's. What had happened to her? Aldarn knew a bit of her and he never thought of her to be evil, but her eyes were telling him differently.

"And of course, Queen Elyon of the Nord."

This time it was not the voice of the Princess.. Queen who spoke. Aldarn recognized the voice slightly, but it was so cold and malicious that he was shivering badly as if he were sick and his mind was rejecting the thought that that was the voice of the Guardian Leader.

The image of the newly appointed Queen of the Nord appeared in the air, not that that was necessary. The smile she was wearing sent even more shivers up Aldarn's spine. What happened to all these people? Cedric was evil, granted. But the Princess.. Uhm.. Queen never had a ominous look in her eyes. The same went for Miranda. Who had been contaminating them so badly?

"But as you've all noticed, I mentioned three Queens." Queen Elyon continued. "And you've already heard her voice, but first I want to introduce you to her knight, who has helped us in numerous ways."

The image of the Queen disappeared and a new one appeared. It was of a guy with unruly hair and a face Aldarn recognized way too well. He was sure his heart skipped a beat when Caleb's grinning face appeared in the clouds. Only now did Aldarn notice the dark look in his eyes. How could he have been so blind? How could he have trusted him for so long? Caleb had been lying to them. He had betrayed them!

Aldarn screamed angered and powerless at the image of Caleb, who only smirked at the people below.

The image disappeared once more and Aldarn heard many shouts of discontent from the rebels. He was sure that this new regime would fall within a week. The rebellion would not stand for this betrayal.

"And now, the one who not only helped us achieve the throne, but who also will be so generous as to rid our people of the four Guardians. She's known as the Warrior Queen of the West and she will be the true ruler."

The clouds formed once more and Aldarn felt fear filling him as the Guardian Leader looked down on them. Her eyes were full of malice and her look promised pain, yet Aldarn could not deny that she looked beautiful. Her smirk was eviler than Aldarn thought to be possible.

Words came from her mouth, but Aldarn never registered them. Her voice gave him chills and her look made him feel weak. The thought of the Guardians came up and he remembered what Queen Elyon had said about them.

At first he did not want to believe it, but the look of the Warrior Queen made him realize that they had been telling the truth. The Guardians were evil and they'd created the monster who would rule them all.

What had they done?

_**[A/N] End of chapter! Now some things you guys should know (and should have noticed).**_

_**1: Phobos's death happened 3 weeks after Christmas. 3 weeks after the last chapter.**_

_**2: Cedric is scared of Will. He just lies to himself :P**_

_**3: Caleb used no mind mojo on Aldarn. Caleb is not magical and Will did not do it through him. Aldarn is just a child who listens hungrily to someone with experience and knowledge, in this case Caleb.**_

_**4: You surely noticed the meme "over 9000". For those who don't know it (which I have trouble to believe) It's something Vegeta says in DBZ when Nappa asks for Goku's power level. Now it's used for pretty much everything that's too much.**_

_**5: You also noticed that the title is a reference to Lord of the Rings (you should be ashamed if you didn't notice it). But sue me! I couldn't stop myself, okay?**_

_**6: Caleb is a hypocrite when we're talking about Will. Will and Phobos act basically the same, but Will does it better. And Caleb (who's obviously and hopelessly in love with Will) gives Will a reason why she is "allowed" to do that.**_

_**7: Also, Fallen Angel is more or less a reference to Will's outfit as well as to the earlier comparisons to the Devil.**_

_**Thanks for reading! AND DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!**_


	14. Chapter 13 You will cry

**Chapter 13 You will cry**

It had been a month. She still couldn't believe that she agreed with the other traitors that their parents would stay at her boyfriend's place. They could all die for all she cared as long as her parents were safe, but then she would lose a massive force in the magic department and she could not allow that to happen. Not when there was this third party trying to overrule them.

*Ring. Ring*

She grabbed for her phone and saw Hay Lin's number flashing on the screen. Hay Lin would be the last person she would want to have a word with. She was the one who killed her sister, only because she had the ridiculous idea that Cornelia had killed her grandmother. Why did she not believe her that she was ice-skating at the time of the avalanche? She would never bother to create an Astral Drop, just to kill Yan Lin. She liked the woman so why would she kill her?

*Ring. Ring*

She sighed and accepted the call, even if it was against her conscious. But if Hay Lin would start blaming her again for the death of her grandmother, Cornelia would see to it she had a reason to blame her.

"Yeah, what do _you_ want?" She sneered.

"Listen miss Cornball. I wouldn't have called you if it weren't for the portal humming in my alley." Hay Lin snarled back at her. "But I want to check on my parents so you better get your ass into gear cause if not, me and Irma will come to get you."

Cornelia's heart skipped. A portal? Portals were very rare and the news of a new one made her happy. Not only could she see her parents again, but also her boyfriend.

"Great. I'll be there in a sec." She said before cancelling the call.

She ran to her closet, pulling a cloak out of it and grabbed her coat. She texted Taranee as she ran for her bike. She knew Taranee would arrive at the same time, seeing that she lived a bit closer to Hay Lin.

She quickly jumped on her bike and shot away, off to the Silver Dragon. She arrived at the Silver Dragon in no time. The restaurant looked a bit lifeless, seeing how the owners left on a 'vacation'. She parked her bike at the same moment that Taranee arrived. She looked a bit red and panted like crazy but her eyes shined with happiness. They hadn't seen their parents for a month so it was only obvious that she would be happy. Cornelia noticed the cloak in her arms and she grinned. They didn't say a thing as they walked to the alley next to the restaurant. Surely there was a humming portal with a sour yet happy looking Irma and Hay Lin standing next to it. She nodded curtly at Irma, while Taranee did the same to Hay Lin. Both nodded back and turned to the portal, shunning the rest.

Cornelia huffed annoyed. If it wasn't for the power she would have killed at least two of them by now. She pulled the cloak over her head, and saw how the others followed her example. She inhaled deeply before stepping through the portal. Once she stepped through it, she knew something was wrong. It was darker than she remembered and ash flew up the moment she landed in the Metaworld. In the distance she could see the castle, still standing on its mountain top. Cornelia's eyes widened. Even from this distance she could see that the walls were damaged. Did that mean that the rebellion had tried to attack the castle?

"Look at the people!" Hay Lin whispered shocked.

Despite her current hatred towards the Air user, Cornelia looked down at the village. She found more people than usual walking the streets, but they all looked scared and bitter. Cornelia signaled the girls to follow her and slowly they walked towards the village. Maybe they could explain to them what happened the past month.

As they entered the village they noticed the increased amount of guards posted. The guards fancied a new armor, black in color with a light blue pattern of an eye on it, slightly similar to Phobos's sign. Cornelia wondered silently why Phobos changed the attire of his guards, or why he fancied himself a new symbol. She heard Hay Lin whisper something similar to Irma while Taranee had caught up with her.

"Strange huh?" She whispered. "Guards with new armor, a breach in the castle walls, the people being bitter. I wonder what happened."

Cornelia nodded curtly and they turned a corner when they heard the voice of a guard.

"Keep on walking rebel scum." He barked. "You don't want to keep Her Majesty waiting, do you?"

Cornelia looked at the girls and they all answered her confused look. Her Majesty? What had happened to Phobos? Had Elyon overthrown him? But then they couldn't imagine why Elyon would punish the rebels.

Cornelia turned her head just in time to see the rebels. Aldarn was among those captured and before she could say anything, his eyes found hers. What happened after that she couldn't really understand.

"You!" He breezed angrily as he jumped out of the line and rushed at Cornelia. "You foul witches! You harbingers of evil! This is your fault! Your mistake!"

The other girls, including the guards, came to Cornelia's aid and in no time Aldarn was subdued. He kept screaming and cursing the Guardians' name until one of the guards knocked him out. Cornelia was looking at him in surprise and fear. Why was he so angry to see her?

"What was that all about?" Irma muttered softly as they saw Aldarn being taken away.

"I don't know, Irma." Cornelia heard herself mutter.

She felt a hand clasp around her arm and she looked up to see an anxious looking Taranee.

"Our parents. Phobos." She whispered scared, but Cornelia knew what she meant.

The girls quickly made their way to the castle, trying to avoid as many people as possible. Aldarn being caught and actually cursing their name couldn't be a good thing. Not if you added the fact that the guard spoke of a Her Majesty instead of a His. As they closed in on the castle, they could see guards standing near the gate. Hay Lin went to investigate, the girls not sure if it was wise to try and just walk inside.

"There are no guards near the breach in the wall." Hay Lin said as she returned. "Not on the outside, nor the inside."

"Then I suggest we'll go through the breach and hope that no one spots us." Cornelia whispered, getting a nod from the other girls.

They slowly made their way to the breach, narrowly escaping a guard who thought he'd seen something, and climbed through it. The courtyard was still covered with rubble and Cornelia could even see some blood splatters. She hid herself deeper in the hood of her cloak and she quickly lead the girls inside.

**…**

It was too easy. Why was the main entrance so heavily guarded while this breach was a much more desirable way for the rebels to enter the castle. It was pretty obvious to Taranee. This was either a trap or the new ruler was very lax when it came to the security of her castle.

The sneaked through the breach, without alerting any of the guards on the walls. The serious lack of guards on the courtyard was also worrying her. She had thought that at least some guards were stalking around, but the only thing that indicated life was the small fire that seemed to burn in the guard post.

Her first instincts were to run away, her mind screaming at her that she had to get away. That she had to run for her life, but she simply wouldn't. The only reason why she was ignoring these warnings was because she was fearing for the life of her parents and boyfriend. Next to the fact that she didn't want to show the other girls that she was scared. It would only make her look as if she was the weakest link and she pretty much loved her life.

They managed to get past the guard post without alarming anyone and they reached the castle with apparent ease. As they entered the castle, Taranee wanted to walk straight towards her parents' quarters when Cornelia made a sudden turn to the throne room.

"Cornelia!" Taranee whispered urgently. "Your boyfriend can wait! We need to check on ours… Our parents first!"

Instead of glaring, Taranee found herself looking at an agony filled face. She didn't know why but it made her heart pound harder and she felt how fear flooded her mind.

"I know T." she said, her voice quivering out of fear. "But I just have this feeling. I need to check the throne room first."

With that she took off, leaving the other three behind. Taranee looked helplessly at Hay Lin, who gave an almost annoyed look in return.

"She's going to get us caught!" She hissed.

"Well Corny wouldn't be Corny if she didn't spice up the mission." Irma chimed in.

Taranee sighed in agreement, but it wouldn't be wise to split up. If horror movies taught her one thing, then it would be to never split up.

A faint memory of Will came up, telling her that together they were stronger.

Her shoulders hang and she hid herself deeper in her cloak.

"Let's go." She sighed, getting an approving mumble from both Irma and Hay Lin.

**…**

This was impossible. Her eyes were deceiving her. This had to be a nightmare, but the pain in her chest was pounding her out of that illusion. She wished her heart would stop. That her lungs stopped recycling air and that her brain would stop trying to recreate the events that might have occurred.

She heard how the other girls came running at her, but her brain could not interpret their words, though their gasps pierced through the air and right into her heart.

They finally saw the horror at which she'd been looking at since she'd told Taranee where she went.

"Is that…" Irma said, but stopped with another unbelieving gasp..

"Oh. My. God." Hay Lin breathed shocked.

Cornelia wished they weren't here. She wished they weren't all looking at him. That they would walk away and go check on their parents. She wanted to be alone for once, just this once.

She felt how her legs slowly moved on their own. How she slowly was closing distance between her and the horrendous scene in front of her. Her eyes were focused on only one thing and her throat went dry when she finally realized that this was real and no nightmare.

Tears filled her eyes and she fell on her knees in front of the throne, her gaze still fixated on the body of her boyfriend, which was hanging high above the throne. His face was filled with fear and his skin was already blackening. He had to be dead for longer than two days and that was what was paining Cornelia. Why had she left her parents here? Why hadn't she stayed by their and Phobos's side?

Phobos hung on one of the thorns, his hair wrapped around his neck. Cornelia never thought to see such a sight. It was as if the pain that he had felt when he died, was still lingering. As if the pain was now attacking her, blaming her for coming so late. More tears found their way to her eyes and she let out a heartbreaking scream, only to find that Hay Lin quickly reduced the volume. Sobs were erupting from her throat and her body was shaking uncontrollably. Tears were creating a steady stream down her cheeks and her sobs ended up to be soundless.

"Whoever did this must have had some wicked sense of humor." She could hear Irma mutter, not that she cared.

If Phobos was like this then she did not want to go and look for her parents. The chance of finding them like Phobos was too big and she didn't think she could survive another scene like this. She felt how a hand slowly wrapped around her shoulder and through her blurry sight, she could see how Taranee was hugging her, whispering soothing words in a consistent manner. She could even hear Irma and Hay Lin being silent in respect for her and her now dead boyfriend.

The silence was cruelly disrupted by the sound of a gasp. Suddenly reality seemed to crash down on her and she quickly jumped up, breaking out of Taranee's grip. She whirled around to find an old woman standing in the entrance of the throne room. She was dressed in a dull green dress with a smudgy white apron, indicating that she was a maid of sorts. She looked at them, shock and surprise on her old face.

Cornelia clenched her fists, ready to fight a way out if the maid called for an alarm. She could see how Taranee readied herself as well, engulfing her hands in flames. The old maid looked in even more surprise at them before quickly looking left and right. Was she looking for reinforcements?

The old maid quickly hurried inside and gestured them to hide behind the curtains. Cornelia raised an eyebrow when Hay Lin suddenly gasped and hid herself. Slowly the sounds of marching soldiers became audible and Cornelia ran for the curtains, barely making it in time.

The maid turned around and greeted the guards with a polite nod. One of them turned to her, unsheathing his weapon.

"What are you doing here, maid?" The guard growled dangerously.

The maid held up her hands and pointed at the body of Phobos. Cornelia kept her eyes on the maid, knowing that she would break into tears if she took another look at his body.

"Her Majesty has ordered me to clean the room from dust." The maid replied, her voice slightly quivering. "I came to see how dusty it was, nothing more."

The guard nodded briskly and sheathed his weapon.

"Very well." He said. "Carry on."

He walked away and Cornelia could feel herself take a deep breath. For a second she thought that the maid would alarm the guards.

She saw how the maid looked around the corner before she gestured at them to come out. She hurried to Cornelia, worry obvious on her wrinkled visage.

This made Cornelia think though. When they were in the village, the rebels attacked them. Aldarn had been blaming them for a lot of things and the villagers who seemed to recognize them had been sure to create a big enough distance between them and the Guardians. So why would this old lady, this maid, look so concerned at them. Cornelia was almost sure that they had been uncovered.

The maid looked at her and brushed some dust away and for a second, Cornelia thought to feel a strong magical pulse from the woman in front of her, but she shook it away as the old lady coughed raspy and loudly. If she even had an ounce of magic, she wouldn't be coughing like a chimney.

"Are you girls okay?" Her old voice asked concerned.

Hay Lin was the first to nod and Cornelia felt how she followed suit. There was something about this old lady that made her feel weird. Apprehensive yet safe.

"Why did you save us?"

The words were out before she knew it. She knew she should actually thank the woman for the risk she was taking but the words seemed to have lost their way to her mouth. Instead her suspicions were worded.

The old woman didn't seem surprised and smiled at her.

"I've heard what you've done, don't worry about that." She said, making Cornelia even more suspicious. "But I don't believe those stories. You are heroes after all."

Cornelia smiled faintly at the woman. So not everyone believed the truth. A feeling of reassurance swept over her. At least their reputation seemed to keep them a bit safe. She could see how Irma grinned awkwardly and how Taranee shuffled uneasy beside her.

"Can you tell us what happened?" Hay Lin asked suddenly, breaking the silence and making the woman smile sadly at them, grief evident on her face while her eyes hid in the shadow her bowed head made.

"I can." She said, her voice cracking a bit. "It happened a week ago. Everything seemed peaceful. Phobos had his usual patrol out and your parents were still in the castle."

"You worked here before?" Taranee interrupted suddenly.

Cornelia raised an eyebrow, not seeing how that was important, but Taranee just shook her head slightly. The woman calmly nodded her head before continuing her story.

"Suddenly battle cries were heard over the plains and a crushing sound told us maids that the castle was under attack. We all hid ourselves. It was true that we were rooting for the rebels, but we were still afraid that we would die." The woman continued. "The battle didn't take long and there ruled a silence for a minute. Suddenly the voice of the lost Princess boomed over the plains and through the castle."

Cornelia's eyes widened surprised. What had Elyon to do with this? How was it possible that she'd ended those fights? Cornelia felt how her eyes traveled back to her boyfriend's body and she started to dread the answer.

"She told us that Prince Phobos had died and that she, as rightful heir, would split up her right for the throne to four people with her included." The woman continued.

Cornelia felt anger pulsing through her body and she could hear how the ground beneath her was tearing open. She felt Taranee's hand on her shoulder, indicating her that she had to calm down. She took some deep breaths and looked back at the woman, who was looking curiously at her. The woman just shook her head before Taranee spoke up.

"Who are the new rulers of Metamoor?" She asked, her voice filled with fear.

"Queen Elyon became the Queen of the North and the Lady of this castle." The old woman replied, gesturing around her. "Queen Miranda is the Queen of the East and King Cedric is King of the South."

"Cedric and Miranda? Working _with_ Elyon?" Irma breathed unbelievingly.

"Was she the one?" Cornelia slowly muttered at the woman, who looked confused at her. "Was Elyon the one who killed Phobos?"

Her voice was filled with anger and pain and she could see how the woman shuffled back while shaking her head slowly.

"N-No." She said softly. "I-I don't know who killed him in the end, but I do know why he is still hanging here."

She looked furious at the old lady, who only took a step back. So it was not Elyon who had developed a sick sense of humor. Perhaps it was Cedric. Cornelia hoped it was him because then she would get a lot of satisfaction if she went to kill him.

"Who?"

Her voice was as cold as ice, yet the old woman did not shiver. She only raised an eyebrow before glancing quickly at the other girls.

"The Warrior Queen ordered for this display." The woman muttered softly, almost as if she were afraid.

Her heart started to pound harder as she looked from the old woman to Phobos's body. Again this Warrior Queen. Taranee and Caleb had been talking about her and now she was the one ruling Metamoor. Cornelia was no fool. She knew that Elyon was too spineless to rule and neither Miranda or Cedric were leader material. It had to be this Queen who held all the strings.

"Our parents!" Hay Lin said quite suddenly, surprising Cornelia.

How could she have forgotten about her parents? They were here when the attack took place. Elyon wouldn't have killed her parents, would she? She wouldn't let them be killed, she wasn't that cruel and she did not know of Cornelia's relationship with Phobos. Perhaps they managed to flee.

"Please ma'am, where are our parents?" Hay Lin pressed on, worry written on her face.

The old woman sighed softly and shook her head. Cornelia refused to believe that they were dead. The woman was just playing a prank on them. A part of her wished that the woman would stay silent but her heart wanted to know where her parents were. The last people she loved could not be in danger.

"The Warrior Queen took them with her." The woman replied. "No one knows if they are still alive or not, but it is rumored that not many people survive when they're taken prisoner by her."

Cornelia clenched her fists again and bit her lip. Her pulse was rising and her breathing became heavier. Again the ground started to tear open and the rubble that she created started to levitate.

"Cornelia, calm down." Taranee warned. "If you get us caught now then we can't go and save them."

Cornelia looked right into Taranee's eyes and she could see the anger burning in them. Her glasses were clearly reflecting the fires of anger which were burning in her eyes. She looked at the others, finding the same looks in their eyes as well. They wanted to get their parents and Cornelia had no doubt that they would help her in her revenge, despite their current inner war.

Again the sound of marching soldiers rang through the halls. The old woman gestured them to hide behind the curtains once more. Cornelia rather wanted to relief some anger but Hay Lin pulled her along. She glared at the petite Asian, who only returned a demanding look.

Just when she had managed to hide herself, a guard appeared in the entrance.

"You there!" He said briskly. "By the orders of Her Majesty of the North, you are to be headed towards the castle of Her Majesty of the West."

The old lady nodded timidly. The guard saluted and Cornelia could swear that she saw pity on the guard's face. As the guard walked away the old woman sighed deeply. Cornelia came from her hiding place behind the curtains while Irma approached the old maid.

"This Queen on the West…. Is she the Warrior Queen?" Irma asked carefully.

The woman nodded slowly and looked curiously at the four of them.

"Why would Elyon want you to come to that castle?" Taranee asked and Cornelia could clearly hear the suspicion in her voice.

The woman shrugged and slowly scurried away, muttering as she walked.

"I guess that the Warrior Queen found out that I was helping you." She said, though her voice didn't seem to hold any fear or sadness. "She knows everything, you know."

Cornelia watched as the woman slowly walked away and she found that her gaze was met by Irma. She nodded and Cornelia nodded in return. This woman could bring them to the castle. This woman could help them save their parents.

"Well… If she already knows…" Cornelia said to the woman.

'Which I find hard to believe.' She thought silently before placing a fake concerned look on her face.

"Then could you help us? We will make sure that you'll survive and we'll get a chance to see our parents."

The woman stopped walking and for a second Cornelia thought she saw Hay Lin shiver. She shook it away as Hay Lin took a step to the old lady and held her arm.

"Please ma'am." She said with so much conviction that even Cornelia almost believed that Hay Lin was the embodiment of innocence. "We want to save our parents as well."

The old woman petted Hay Lin on her head before sighing.

"Then I guess we'll need more horses." She said, getting a smile from Hay Lin, Irma and Cornelia.

Cornelia noticed that Taranee was looking suspicious at the woman. When her gaze crossed Taranee's, Taranee shook her head and gave an unconvincing smile. Taranee was up to something, but what could it be?

"I also think that we should avoid towns."

The woman's voice cut her from her thoughts and Cornelia looked up surprised. Why did they have to avoid towns? The woman seemed to have read her mind and looked at her with piercing mahogany eyes which startled her slightly. Those eyes… Why did they seem familiar?

"Unlike me the majority of Metamoor believes you to be evil." The woman explained calmly. "Unless you want a riot on your heads I suggest we take the route past the villages."

Cornelia nodded dumbly. Those eyes of the woman kept mesmerizing her. There was something so familiar about them, yet she could not put her finger on it. The woman took a good look at her and then sighed.

"But first I have to get you some clothes. I cannot claim you to be my helpers if you wear those strange clothes. Those cloaks will only bring more suspicion." She said as she wanted to walk away.

"That's not necessary." Cornelia heard herself say.

In a whim she conjured up a glamour that easily made her look like a third rank maid. She had changed her hair color and adjusted her face slightly, making the chance that someone would recognize her slim to none. Cornelia watched with satisfaction how the other three girls glamoured as well, much to the woman's surprise.

For a second Cornelia thought to see a satisfying glance in the woman's eyes, but that quickly disappeared as she hurried to the exit, beckoning the girls to follow her. Just before Cornelia left the throne room she looked back one more time. Phobos's body was still hanging on the ceiling and she swore that she would not only avenge his death, but that she would also bury him afterwards.

**…**

Yes, she was suspicious. Why wouldn't she be? This woman appears on the precise moment that they needed a guide and she just happened to go to this Warrior Queen? And she isn't concerned that she gets killed or not? She seemed rather calm about the fact that she was summoned for her death.

And if the woman was right about the Warrior Queen knowing everything, then why hadn't she shown up yet? Why was this Queen so concerned about staying in the shadows? Was she really terrifying or was she afraid of showing herself? Afraid that people would find out that she wasn't so scary at all?

These questions kept haunting her mind and Taranee could not help but keep her gaze on the old woman, who was riding in front of her. Getting horses had ended up to be quite easy. The guards were all showing pity for them when the woman told them where they were headed. The woman seemed to hold a grasp on everyone in the castle, yet no one seemed to know her name. She never introduced her properly and never asked for their names either. Wasn't she interested?

"With this speed, we should arrive at the castle in about five days." The old woman said while they kept riding.

That was another thing that irked her. She had known that the Warrior Queen resided in the west, yet Taranee had never seen a castle of sorts. The woman in front of her refused to say anything in particular about this Queen as well and Taranee knew that she could not go and ask villagers. They would only attack her or run away.

While these thoughts and possible scenarios ran through her head, they kept on moving. The silence was awkward and not even Irma complained when they skipped lunch. They just kept moving. The only thing that was notable was that they deglamoured the moment they entered the domain of the Warrior Queen. It was neatly bordered by the seemingly endless green forests, which was another thing Taranee found strange.

The capitol, where Elyon was said to be ruling, was rather dark and there were many signs of fires. But here, where a supposed evil Queen reigned, was the nature almost untouched. The only thing that indicated evil were the dark rumbling clouds above them and Taranee doubted that that was caused by this Queen.

The only way that she could see that it was evening was because of the sudden clearance. The clouds had moved on and they found their path illuminated by the bright moon and the numerous stars which hang in the dark blue sky. A roar from her stomach made it clear that she was hungry and the echoes that came from the others only made it clear that they had to stop and take a rest.

They stopped near a small spring. The horses were bound to some trees and they saw how the woman took some apples and carrots from her saddlebag. She handed them to the girls and slowly they went to eat. Silence kept reigning and no one said a word as they went to sleep, though Taranee kept one eye open. She would have to be extremely tired before she would allow herself to fall asleep with Irma near her. Even if she found that the things that had been happening to them strange and coincidental, she was still suspicious of Irma. And by the lack of Hay Lin's snoring, Taranee could easily deduct that she was also still suspicious of Cornelia.

In fact the only who seemed to sleep soundly was the old woman, who was looking rather fit the next day.

Two days passed and nothing happened. None of the girls wanted to actually start a conversation and the woman seemed to be happy enough when she was left alone. It was true that Taranee sometimes drifted to the minds of the other girls, finding the same suspicions roaming their minds. She also sensed Cornelia grief for Phobos and her hatred towards the unknown Queen. Next to the fact that she seemed to watch Hay Lin like a hawk, while Hay Lin did the same to Cornelia.

Irma was still angry with her, but Taranee did not pay any attention to it. Irma had always been unreasonable and she would have been surprised if she wasn't still mad at her.

During the fourth day of their traveling, nothing seemed to happen, except that the woman left them near the evening.

"There is a little village nearby." She said. "They sell excellent fruits and even have a special one which only grows in these districts, called the banange. It's a sort of combination between the orange and a strange yellow fruit of which people say that it comes from Earth. You stay here and create a nice little fire, I'll be back before the sun's completely down."

The woman gave the reigns to Irma, but Taranee noticed how her eyes betrayed something else. She was planning something, or had she finally gone paranoid?

Taranee heard how Cornelia faintly started to order Irma and Hay Lin to go search for some wood. She herself was no longer near Cornelia to get an order anyway. She had tried to follow the elderly woman when suddenly Cornelia's voice reached her ears again.

"Taranee! You can't follow her!" Cornelia said annoyed. "You don't want to get caught, right? Besides tomorrow we'll arrive at that wretched castle and I think it's better that you get some sleep."

Taranee turned around, looking annoyed at Cornelia. She was right. Tomorrow they would save their parents and it would be better if they got some sleep before they went in. Now all of them were cranky because of the lack of sleep over the days. How much she hated it, she had to take a small nap.

At that moment Irma and Hay Lin returned, both holding some wood. As they piled up the wood, Taranee looked confused at Cornelia.

"Why have them bring wood while I could create a fire?" She asked slightly annoyed.

Cornelia sighed and rolled her eyes as if it was obvious.

"Please. When you fall asleep, the fire will disappear as well. And I don't want to fall prey to some wolves." She said in her usual 'That's obvious' tone.

"Next to the fact that I cannot burn any hostile branches if your fire dies out." Hay Lin said as she went to lay next to her.

Taranee grinned and raised an eyebrow, while Cornelia growled softly. Suddenly Hay Lin yelped in shock and pain as she shot up into the air, landing on a branch of the tree above.

"Sweet dreams Hey Hay." Cornelia sneered with a snicker.

Hay Lin reacted by sending Cornelia up in a tree with a small tornado. Taranee sighed annoyed as Cornelia landed in a neighboring tree. Cornelia reacted by making the branches hug Hay Lin tight to the tree while Hay Lin blew hard at Cornelia, nearly blowing her out of the tree.

"Guys, stop this!" Taranee said heavily annoyed.

She was tired and wanted some rest and not a fight between them. Not now when they were so close to saving their parents.

"Yeah, I would stop too. Seeing that the two of you are sitting on highly flammable things and you don't want to be the second one to fall to Taranee's fire, do you?" Irma sneered.

Taranee immediately glared at Irma, whose bags under her eyes were much bigger, and smirked.

"Well, you can always douse the fire seeing that you're in time now. And while you're at it you can drown them as well!"

Irma's face contorted with rage and she shot a blast of water at Taranee. Taranee was way too tired to dodge and received the full hit. She got up and she was on the verge of countering when she let her arm fall. This was bringing them nothing. Peter wouldn't return if she burnt Irma to a crisp, even if she wanted to.

She shook her head and sighed, before heating herself to evaporate the water. She then went to lie down, her back to Irma.

"What's this? No clever come back, four eyes?" Irma sneered, clearly angered that Taranee wasn't reacting.

Taranee shot a small fire bolt at the pile of wood Irma had gathered, lighting it.

"I'm going to sleep. We need our strength for tomorrow and this fighting will not only weaken us more, but it also won't bring back our loved ones." She said harshly.

A silence ruled on the spot and Taranee sighed deeply. She hoped that the old woman wouldn't wake them. She rather slept with hunger than fight with sleep.

**…**

She was pacing in the throne room. It had been almost 2 weeks ago that they'd taken over Metamoor. And the Guardians were now supposed to be roaming around, hoping to find this castle. What was taking them so long? Weren't they concerned about their parents?

Swift footsteps sounded through the hallway and she stopped pacing. It wasn't the sound of guards or maids, so who would it be? Her question was quickly answered with the girl who appeared casually in the entrance. Her smile was scaring and her eyes twinkled with joy. She raised an eyebrow.

"Shouldn't you be in bed by now, Queen Elyon?" She drawled, sarcasm heavy in her voice.

She raised an eyebrow on her own and crossed her arms.

"I was waiting for you." She replied casually. "When do you think they will arrive?"

Will laughed while walking in, grabbing some bananges from the scale of the table nearby and taking a bite out of one.

"Why so anxious?" She asked, her mouth full with fruit. "You already had your fun."

Elyon growled softly. There had been no fun in her vengeance against Phobos. Which could be because she had to share with three others and she hated sharing.

"You call that fun? I blocked his attacks and blew him through the room once." She countered, making Will shrug.

"So? If you hadn't let him escape, I never interfered and you would have had more fun with him. So it's your fault." She said calmly.

Elyon bit her tongue. Blaming wouldn't help now anyway and perhaps Will would let her do something against Cornelia if she kept silent. Will calmly ate her fruit and took an apple. As she inspected it her eyes found Elyon's again.

"Is everything prepared?" She asked calmly.

Elyon nodded. Everything was prepared ever since they'd left Phobos hanging in her castle. Lisa was attending the 'guests' and Elyon made sure that everyone was here for a happy reunion. Now that she thought about it…

"Uhm… About your little reunion with the two remaining ex-Guardians, seeing that Yan Lin is already dead and Nerissa is locked up in Kandrakar…" Elyon started, gaining Will's attention.

"Mmm?"

"I don't know if you did it, or if someone is pulling our legs, but they died. Kadma died of a sudden heart attack while Cassidy died in a car crash, about a week after Yan Lin's death." Elyon said bluntly, awaiting Will's reaction with a slight fear.

Up until now nothing had been against them. Everything had gone smoothly. But when Will had ordered Elyon to go and collect the last two ex-Guardians, so she could absorb their powers as well, things were against them. A dead person held no powers.

Will sighed and shook her head.

"That's rather disappointing to hear." She said, though she did not sound sad. "But hey, I can't have all the luck in the world. Besides, it's all a matter of time anyway."

She ate the last bit of her apple and looked at the bowl of fruit. There were four bananges left and Elyon rose an eyebrow as she took all four of them.

"Be prepared. We should arrive at noon tomorrow." She said calmly before leaving the throne room.

Elyon sighed. She turned around to stare out of the window. What would happen if Will finished her vengeance? It had been a concern of her, Miranda and Cedric. What would Will do and how would they react to it? They could not stop her or else they would die because of the vow. Elyon gulped softly as she realized that Will was basically impossible to stop. They were the only ones who could get close enough to her and she had immunity near them. No one else could get close enough.

A slight sigh came from her. At least she was safe and that was what counted.

**…**

She wasn't really surprised that there were no maids in the kitchen, but she didn't want to be given an unfair advantage. Well, she didn't want them to be too hungry to fight her. Cause there would be no fun if they collapsed from hunger.

As she gathered some supplies like cheese and bread into a big napkin, an energy force came closer. She could easily recognize it as Lisa's and kept continuing while her maid came in. She heard Lisa gasp and rush at her, helping her packing some food and bottles with water.

"Milady… Will." She started. "What are you doing so late? Had called for me and I would have helped you."

Will sighed. The girl meant well but sometimes she was rather annoying. But she was useful. For example, not even Matt attacked Lisa, just because she was supposedly innocent. She was, but seeing that Lisa was one of many who actually saw Will as a good person, one could question her sanity. At least she was a way to keep the people silent and satisfied.

"I'm used to doing menial labor." She said, getting a small smile from Lisa.

Lisa closed the napkin and handed it to Will. Will looked curious at the girl as Lisa looked down, which normally meant that she acknowledged Will as her superior, while she had told her to look at her when spoken to.

She shook her head and grabbed the food. Maybe she could let the girls fight each other for food. That wasn't such a bad idea. As she walked away she heard Lisa gasp from behind her.

"Ma'am! Will!" She called, yet Will kept walking.

If it was important it could also wait a day. Will kept walking, ignoring Lisa's requests to stop. Lisa rushed forward and stopped in front of her, bowing deep.

"Please… I have a request." She stammered.

Will sighed and looked at Lisa. What could possibly be of interest?

"I… I want to ask you… If you would want to… Could you please let this boy Eric alive?"

At this Will started to grin. What was this? Another potential way to hurt Hay Lin? And perhaps an interesting way to use Eric as well.

"Why would I keep him alive?" She asked, more to taunt Lisa than anything else.

Lisa bowed deeper, but Will could see the blush that appeared on her cheeks.

"I… I… I like him." She stuttered.

Will snickered softly and shook her head. Lisa was still young and naïve. She had to know how it was to get a broken heart. But perhaps it would make Lisa more useful in the future. Besides, hunting men was fun.

She walked past Lisa, not saying a word and she could hear Lisa sobbing softly.

"I'll see." She said, before teletransporting to the Guardians.

When she arrived she saw a rather amusing scene. Taranee lay near a puddle of water, Cornelia hang in a tree and Hay Lin was entangled in another. Only Irma seemed to be completely unharmed, but her face was red and wet of tears. So they were still blaming each other. Perfect.

A mischievous grin appeared on her face as she noticed how the four of them were sleeping, just like they would do at a nice slumber party. It had been a long time since she had participated in such and if she remembered correctly, they also had a thing for collective dreaming. Yes, this was going to be a fun night.

**…**

"_Irma!"_

_She looked around, finding herself in a crowded street. She was sure she heard it correctly and she kept gazing over the many unknown faceless people who walked past her, hoping to find the source of the sound. It was Chris who was calling her and it sounded as if he needed her badly._

"_Irma! Help me, please!"_

_She started running, shouting her little brother's name frequently. The people around her kept blocking her way and she had to push them roughly to get past them. She could see smoke in the distance and the cries of her little brother were diminishing, as if he was losing the hope that she would save him._

"_I'm coming Chris!" She shouted, running at her top speed._

_Fires were flaring up and she stopped abruptly, watching with rising agony at how the school of her little brother was being consumed by flames, while she could hear her brother's voice echoing through the flames._

"_Why weren't you there?"_

"_I trusted you."_

"_I thought you would protect me."_

_She fell on her knees, tears falling in a consistent manner down her face. She was too late. She had failed him. Why couldn't she arrive on time?_

_A laugh pulled her out of her self-pity and from the fire she could see the recognizable silhouette of Taranee. Hatred filled her heart. Of course it was Taranee. How else could there be a random fire?_

_She ran at the culprit, creating a water barrier around her to keep the fire away. She reached out for Taranee's shoulder when she suddenly noticed how the water stopped barring the fire. She even noticed that the fire and Taranee had disappeared and that she was standing on the beach. Fear filled her as the water of her barrier suddenly shot at the image of Peter, drowning him right in front of Taranee, who was now standing opposite of her._

_Taranee screamed in pain and tried to save Peter, while Irma tried to call the water back, but nothing happened. Peter's body fell limp and only then Irma regained the control over the water. Which was a good thing as well._

_Taranee shot a bolt of fire at her in hatred and Irma blocked._

"_You killed him!" Taranee cried angered._

_For some reason, she did not want to deny it. For some reason she even forgot what she had witnessed. The only thing that went through her mind was Chris's death._

"_You killed Chris!" She cried back, sending a tidal wave at Taranee._

_Taranee changed into her Zenith form, evaporating the water and sending a fiery dragon at Irma. Irma felt how the hatred towards Taranee and the grief for losing her brother were controlling her mind and she let herself be consumed by her powers, turning into her Zenith form as well. The last thing she heard before rushing at Taranee was the sound of croaking frogs._

**…**

_Again she was running. She passed many trees, not bothering to count them. Why was she running? Why was she scared? The only thing she could clearly remember was that she had been running the moment she arrived, not looking back._

"_You cannot escape."_

_She held her hands to her ears, not wanting to hear the voice. The voice had been repeating the same sentence over and over, making her heart stop every time it whispered in her ear. Tears were now flooding from her eyes out of fear and Hay Lin wished the voice would stop. That she could finally sit down and rest._

_Her eyes widened when she saw the ending of the forest. Was she saved? Could this be the way out of this nightmare? Rumbling sounds came from behind and Hay Lin looked back, the first time since she entered this strange forest. She gasped loudly when she saw how numerous rocks were rolling her way. There was an avalanche!_

_She forced her legs to move quicker and she felt how fatigue was burning her mind and body. She had to move. She had to survive._

"_It was you."_

_Hay Lin looked at her right, seeing her grandmother sitting a little in front of her. She was looking shocked at Cornelia, who was only smirking. She screamed out for her grandmother, but she was not heard. She ran towards her and grabbed her by her shoulders, pushing Cornelia aside._

"_Come on grandma!" Hay Lin pleaded. "I'll save you from this avalanche."_

_Yan Lin looked sadly at her and grabbed her cheeks softly._

"_If you want to get out alive, run for your life." She said, though her voice was quivering._

_With that she pushed Hay Lin out of the way of a rock while being squashed by it. Hay Lin yelled in shock and pain. Her grandmother died in front of her while she could have saved them both. Tears filled her eyes and she heard Cornelia laughing. Her eyes found the infuriating blonde, yet Cornelia only pointed at something behind Hay Lin. Hay Lin heard once again the rumbling of rocks and despite her hatred, she started running. Running for her life with Cornelia's merciless laughter in her ears._

_Without a warning the rumbling stopped and she found herself in a park. The air was acting strangely around her and as she walked through the park, her mind still filled with grief for her grandmother and hatred for Cornelia, she bumped into Lillian._

_At first she wanted to kill Lillian in revenge for her grandmother, but the little kid hadn't done a thing and it would be low of her to do such a thing. Yet the air didn't seem to share her view. She felt how the air started to pull all the air out of Lillian's lungs and how hard she tried, she could not manage to stop the air from suffocating Lillian._

_A gasp got her attention and she saw how Cornelia had suddenly appeared, looking shocked from Lillian to Hay Lin. Right then Hay Lin felt how the air once again obeyed her and she looked with shock at how Lillian's body fell to the ground._

"_You killed her." Cornelia muttered shocked and angered. "You killed my little sister!"_

_Earth rumbled beneath her and a crevice appeared, though Hay Lin jumped over it. She didn't seem to recall that she had killed Lillian. The only thing that kept replaying in her mind was how Cornelia had killed her grandmother and she even dared to blame her for a murder she did not commit._

"_You are the killer!" She yelled angered as she fired a strong gale of wind. "You killed grandma!"_

_Cornelia countered by turning into her Zenith form, ingraining her roots and withstanding the wind. Suddenly trees popped out of the ground like daisies and they soon entangled Hay Lin completely, making it almost impossible for her to breath. Going Zenith would be the only way to stay alive and Hay Lin gladly let the winds of anger and grief take control of her._

_The last thing she heard was the sound of croaking frogs and the last thing she saw were strings that came from both her and Cornelia._

**…**

"Aaaaaaah!"

She shot up while her scream was echoed by three other people. A dull *thump* sound made it clear that someone had fallen from the trees above, but Irma did not look up. Instead she looked at her hands, hoping to find normal human hands.

What had happened? Had it all been a dream? It felt so real. Her hands went to her chest, holding her aching heart. It was pumping like mad and the pain of losing her little brother once again made it pump in agony. Tears were forced out while she tried to control her breathing. Taranee had killed her brother again, only this time it was just a dream.

"Are you okay?"

She immediately jumped up, startled by the sudden voice. She looked around wildly, only to find that the old woman was tending to Cornelia, who had fallen out of her tree. Had she had a nightmare as well?

Cornelia jumped up and brushed the woman away. The woman nodded slowly before returning to a new fire.

"What was that?"

She looked aside to see Taranee looking pensively at her hands, before turning her gaze to the others. When their eyes met, Irma felt the urge of blasting Taranee again, but she stopped herself. They would save their parents today. After that she would take her revenge on Taranee.

The cracking sound of wood made her look up. Hay Lin managed to wriggle herself loose from the branches in which Cornelia had trapped her and she was now slowly descending down the bark, her face filled with fear, hurt and anger. Had they all been dreaming? Had they all turned Zenith?

Her stomach made her forget about her nightmare. The sudden jabs of pain forced her to her knees and she groaned heavily. She hadn't dined and she had the nasty feeling that she'd slept through breakfast. She was probably too hungry to think straight.

The sound of growling stomachs echoed as well and Irma heard the old woman chuckle.

"My, you all seem hungry. When I returned I found you all sleeping. I thought it would be better if you got a good night rest." The old woman explained.

Irma saw that the woman was holding a loaf of bread, some cheese and a strange looking fruit in front of her and she accepted it hungrily. She could hear the others mutter their thanks but she was too busy eating. The bread tasted a bit old and the cheese was slightly sour but Irma couldn't care less. She had food and she had had a good night sleep, even though she had been haunted by a nightmare.

Breakfast went quickly as no one say a word. Irma had been keeping an eye on Taranee while Hay Lin kept looking at Cornelia. The old woman just hummed a tune which was repeated by the birds high in the trees. They saddled their horses and took off, riding steadily towards the east.

A sigh escaped Irma's lips. They had been riding for a full five days by now and she wished they hurried up. She gave her horse the sign to go a bit faster and she ended up riding next to the old lady. She did notice that the woman was sitting rather energetic, which seemed a little strange for a woman her age. She shook the suspicion away and leaned forward.

"So… When do you think we'll get there?" She said nonchalantly.

The old woman shook her head and sighed, pointing forward.

"If you looked around you instead of asking these questions you would have seen that we're almost there."

Irma looked past the woman's finger and her eyes widened in shock. A massive castle appeared in front of her. The walls were of black stone and the large gate was impressive to behold. How could they have missed this? It was practically in the middle of the forest! It was easier to target than a pimple on Cornelia's face!

She did notice that there were no guards standing near the entrance. She wanted to ask the maid why there were no guards, but the maid only shook her head. Irma noticed how the maid bowed her head and she unconsciously did the same. Better to stay unnoticed now.

**…**

Her heart was beating quickly. Finally had they arrived at the castle. Not only could she save her parents but she could finally take revenge on the one responsible for her misery. The one responsible for Phobos's death. She scoffed softly as she thought of the stupid title. Pff. Warrior Queen. She wouldn't be surprised if this Queen turned out to be an old prune who let other people do her chores. She was betting that it was an old woman who knew how to talk and how to intimidate, nothing more.

As they climbed off their horses a whistle was heard in the distance. The horses immediately reacted and ran towards the sound.

"Hey!" Hay Lin yelled after them.

"Get back here you overgrown donkeys!" Irma yelled.

Cornelia shook her head. Those horses were definitely trained. Calling after them would be pointless.

Coughing caught her attention and she saw how the old woman was making her way to the entrance of the castle. Cornelia signaled the others to follow her, but to keep a bit of distance. That way they could still make a run for it if they got caught in a trap.

They waited for the maid to enter the castle before they followed. The eerie feeling that they were walking into a trap was being subdued by her will to find her parents, alive and well. As they entered the castle, Cornelia couldn't help but notice how large it was. She never thought that there would be a bigger castle than Phobos's, but she was wrong. This one seemed more complex and more beautiful. Whoever this Warrior Queen was, she did know how to live in style.

She saw how the maid took a corner and again Cornelia couldn't help the sever lack of guards in the castle. This had to be a trap. No way that they could have so much luck that there were no guards at the moment. But… If she was so sure this was a trap, why was she advancing? Why was her urge to save her parents greater than her common sense? Because they were the only ones left she could trust and love?

Her footsteps were echoed by the footsteps of her Guardians. Why weren't they stopping her? She was sure that Taranee's mind was yelling danger. Why wasn't she reluctant? Were they all mindlessly following her?

Voices rang through the hallway and she quickly signaled the girls to hide in a nearby room. They ran into a luckily empty room and closed the door just before two people rounded the corner.

"She said she would let him live." A girl's voice said happily.

She looked confused at the others, but they just shook their heads and shrugged. Was this a maid who was talking?

"She said it?" Another, older, voice came. "Did she really say those words? I hardly believe it. The Warrior Queen does not simply let her prisoners alive."

She heard how the footsteps ceased and Cornelia crossed her fingers, hoping that the two didn't enter.

"Well… She said that she would see." The first voice said, now slightly sadder. "But she has always been nice to me."

The older voice clacked with her tongue.

"Watch my words Lisa. She's dangerous. Everyone in the castle knows that. You are one of the few who actually admire her. I really wonder if that isn't a side effect of being her maid."

"You will see. She isn't that bad." The first voice, Lisa said impatiently. "She even allows me to speak to her with her first name."

The second voice gasped softly.

"Don't say it in my presence!" She hissed before Cornelia could hear the sound of footsteps again. "I don't want to be cursed."

An extra sound of footsteps followed the second maid quickly.

"Wait, Aileen! I promise I won't say it!" Lisa yelled.

When the sound of the footsteps had died away Cornelia let out her breath which she'd been unconsciously holding. This Warrior Queen was creating confusion under her staff. She looked confused at the others. How could someone be so feared yet loved by random people? It wasn't making any sense. A respectable tyrant was feared by everyone, not loved.

"I think we should go and come back another time."

Her gaze went to Taranee. So she was scared. She could read the same idea on Hay Lin's face, but Irma only raised an eyebrow.

"Sure, when scaredy-cat is afraid, we should just abandon our families as well. Well sorry, but now that we're finally here and I'm sick of waiting!" Irma hissed angered.

"I agree. Now there are no guards. Now we can easily take this fake queen down." Cornelia said forcefully. "And you've heard those two. This Warrior Queen rarely lets a prisoner alive. And I do not want to find my parents in the same state as Phobos! Or do you want to see your parents and boyfriend hang on vines?"

Taranee shook her head forcefully and Cornelia could see that all fear was gone. There was now only determination and she nodded grimly. They had to find their families. Now or never.

She nodded at them and they crouched out of the room. They found the hall way empty and they quickly went the way where they'd last seen the maid. Why did the woman scurry further without them?

They walked slowly and cautiously through the many hall ways, depending mostly on Hay Lin's hearing.

"You are awful!"

"I can't believe you actually went with this!"

Her heart nearly stopped before going into high gear. That was the voice of her mother! She was still alive! Without looking back Cornelia rushed around a corner. In the distance she could see the old maid standing in front of closed doors, waiting for them. She rushed at her, keeping her mouth closed so she would not scream for her parents. If they were still alive, she could save them.

She stopped in front of the woman and she could hear that the others had followed her as well. The old woman sighed, almost relieved and her trembling hands went to the door, as if she were scared to open them. Cornelia didn't wait for the old woman to move and kicked the door open, revealing a large room. Water streamed right next to the walls, disappearing undergrounds and large unlit fire pots were standing on the far corners of the room. Roses were planted in pots across the room while at the far end she could see four thrones standing high and mighty and on the right there was a cage. With their parents and boyfriends.

"Mom! Dad!" She yelled as she ran at the cage.

She heard the other girls yelling in happiness as well and soon she was standing at the cage, her arms reaching for her parents. Her parents grabbed her hands she tried to hug them, while she was crying out of happiness. Her parents were alive.

"Cornelia, you need to get out of here." Her mother whispered urgently at her.

She shook her head.

"Not without you guys I won't." She replied as she took a couple of steps back, getting ready to open the cage.

"Cornelia stop!" Her father said desperately. "You don't know what's going on!"

"Relax Mr. H." Irma said casually as Cornelia focused on her magic. "Corny can crack this sucker in no time and then we're out before they catch us."

"Irma, that's not the problem!" Matt said, sounding scared. "It's not us she wants but you!"

Cornelia raised an eyebrow. Who would be so stupid as to try and catch them. She grinned at the thought and shook her head. They would be long gone before that happened.

Just when she wanted to use her magic a voice came from the shadows. A voice she hadn't heard in a long time.

"Releasing prisoners without permission isn't nice Cornelia."

She gasped and let her arms fall, turning around to the source of the voice. From the shadows behind one of the thrones came Elyon, dressed in a beautiful, curve hugging white dress. On her head was a simple yet elegant silver circlet with a pale blue sapphire in the centre. Anger filled her as she looked at the silvery eyes of her once best friend. The girl finally showed up and she was going to get it.

"You?" She said, surprise still in her voice. "How dare you to show up now? Did you kill Phobos?"

Elyon just smiled stupidly at her, but there was something off about the girl. She didn't seem to be so innocent as before. She shook those thoughts away when Elyon laughed softly.

"What? You are asking me what I'm doing in the Warrior Queen's castle?" She asked innocently. "At least I was invited. And besides, why would I kill my beloved brother? Just because you slept with him?"

Cornelia's face contorted in rage and surprise. So she did know. There were no retorts she could swing back at Elyon and she just glared at the girl, ready to kill her if she made one wrong move.

"So you're not the Warrior Queen?"

Elyon laughed again before shaking her head.

"Please no. Taranee, I thought you would have figured it out already." She replied, still holding the annoying grin on her face.

"Listen blondie. I don't care who you think you are, but you cannot shamelessly kidnap our families!" Irma yelled frustrated at Elyon.

"Or kill them, right?" Elyon said, her grin devilish.

Cornelia's eyes widened. What was she talking about? Did she know of the betrayal among them? But how could she know? She had been here on Metamoor all along. There was no way that she could have known about the deaths of her sister!

Suddenly Elyon's gaze went from them to someone behind them and her smile became only bigger.

"So you're finally here too? I thought you would be the first to enter."

A cold laugh came from behind them and, against her better judgment, Cornelia turned around. The old maid had entered and closed the door. Now she was smiling evilly at them. Slowly the pieces were falling together.

"It was you!" She said angered. "You were the one who laid this trap!"

While her family and the families of the others mumbled confused, the other girls turned around as well, all preparing themselves for the fight.

"Why would you do that?" Taranee asked angered. "I thought you trusted us."

The woman shook her head slowly, her eyes darkening with every word they had said.

"That's true. I trusted you…Once."

Something was off. That was not the voice of the old woman. It sounded younger and full of hatred and spite. But the thing that gave Cornelia the shivers was not the coldness that lay in the sound of the voice, but the voice itself. She could recognize it, but it shouldn't be possible. She was dead. There was no way she could have survived that.

"I don't know why you help Elyon but lady, prepare to get your ass kicked!" Irma said angered before Eric yelled out in fear.

"Don't you guys see it?" He said. "This was her plan all along! She isn't dead!"

Her mind went blank as she looked at the shocked face of Eric. The others all had the same look on their face and even the girls started to pale. No, he was lying. Someone had tempered with his mind. It was impossible for her to be here.

"My.. Such a sudden silence."

Her gaze was pulled to the old woman, who was now smirking big time. Slowly a glamour ring appeared around the body of the woman and Cornelia felt her fear increase. The glamour ring was bigger than normal and lightning shot off it, nearly hitting them. A strange aura of darkness started to fill the room and Cornelia could see her breath in the sudden coldness of the room. Elyon giggled in the background while Cornelia looked in shock at how the old woman was slowly but surely turning into…

"No way!" Irma breathed.

"But… But you died!" Hay Lin stuttered confused.

The glamour ring had disappeared and standing in front of them was none other than Will Vandom.

**…**

She did not know what to think. Should she be sad? Angry? Happy? Her head was spinning. How was this even possible? She had been there when they nearly killed her. How did she survive?

She found that she had been holding her breath the moment Will had deglamoured herself and she exhaled, shock still evident on her face as she checked out Will. Will had changed a lot since the last time she'd seen her. Her hair had grown a bit and she was slightly taller. She also seemed to be a bit buffer than before. She was wearing black cargo jeans and a dark purple shirt with only one sleeve. The shirt was open around the middle, revealing a dragon tattoo though Taranee was sure she could also see an old scar being masked by it. Some army boots completed the rather daring outfit. But the thing that caught Taranee's attention was the crown on her head and the sword at her hip. It had the same design as Elyon's only it was made of gold and it had a ruby encrusted in it.

A gasp at her right made Taranee look up out of her thoughts. Hay Lin's eyes were wide in surprise and she pointed slightly confused at Will.

"You! You were at the Dragon on Halloween!" She accused, though she sounded a bit unsure.

After all… HOW DID SHE SURVIVE?

Will snickered in return, sending shivers up Taranee's spine. She couldn't remember Will being like this. Why wasn't she looking slightly unsure or shy? She was now emitting an aura of hatred that made it difficult for Taranee to breath. She really preferred the old Will.

"What? Me?" Will replied, crossing her arms while casually walking through the room. "I thought I was supposed to be dead. What was the cause again? Do you remember it, Caleb?"

A loud gasp came from her lips when from the shadows, another person appeared. Caleb had known about Will all along? She felt her mouth go dry when she took in Caleb's new appearance as well. The guy seemed to be a lot buffer than when she last saw him and the dark armor gave him pretty much the whole 'evil knight' concept. Will's sign was shining on his chest plate and he casually went to stand next to Elyon, taking a pensive pose.

"I thought you died by a car crash, or so I've heard." He replied calmly, but Taranee could hear the danger in his voice.

"Car crash?"

She turned her head so quickly that she hurt herself. From the other side of the thrones two more people appeared. Cedric and Miranda were both grinning at them, malicious delight shining in their eyes. Cedric was wearing his usual green robes, though he was also wearing a silvery crown, only his was imbedded with an emerald. Miranda was wearing a simple purple dress, similar to Elyon's, and she was also wearing a silvery crown, hers was imbedded with an opal.

"I was sure I heard them speak of a Lurden attack, am I right Miranda?" Cedric hissed.

"I believe so." Miranda added, nodding slowly.

What were they doing here? What was going on?

"Funny.." Will said, snapping Taranee once more out of her thoughts. "I was sure that the Guardians tried to kill me."

With that lightning started to crackle around her and her eyes looked furiously at them. Taranee took a step back, looking at her in fear. She had seen Will angry, but this was a whole new level. She couldn't help but berate herself. She should have stood for Will and tried to protect her. She had been a coward and now she was pretty much paying for it.

"You're mad!" She heard her Cornelia's mother yell. "My daughter would never do such a thing!"

The lightning calmed down and from the corners of her eyes, Taranee saw how Elyon, Cedric and Miranda took each place on one of the thrones. Will was now halfway the room, a crazy glimmer in her eyes.

"What's this?" She asked, her voice barely more than a whisper, yet clearly audible in the room. "They don't know the real story? Are you ashamed of what you've done? Are you perhaps feeling any regret?"

She didn't know how to reply. Will was right, they hadn't told their parents out of shame. They had actually sunk that low as to try and kill their friend. She looked down, not daring to look at her parents face.

"No reply?" Will continued, not being bothered by the obvious lack of replies. "Not that I'm surprised, though I would have loved it to see you guys talk yourselves out of this."

"She's lying, right?" Her mother questioned. "You never tried to…to kill her, did you?"

Taranee didn't face the cage and instead glared angrily at Will. Will only looked casually at her, a playful smirk on her lips. What was her goal? Disgracing them in front of their parents? Was she really that childish to do such things?

"Irma, tell me she's lying." Mr. Lair commanded, yet for the first time Irma stayed silent.

Taranee looked aside and saw tears at the edge of Irma's eyes. She was really berating herself for lying to her parents.

"Hay Lin?"

Hay Lin merely smiled sadly at her parents. Taranee did not know what Will's exact plan was, but this was just pitiful. Hurting their parents like this.

There was a shocked silence and Taranee could clearly hear Cedric snicker from his throne. This was merely a play for them. Suddenly Cornelia laughed fruitlessly and Taranee looked confused at her. She saw Will raising an eyebrow and waited calmly for Cornelia to speak up.

"Yeah, we tried to kill you. I hope you're happy to hear it." She said, getting gasps from her parents, as well as the other families and Eric and Nigel. "And I'm sorry we did a poor job at it. Let's fix it."

Will chuckled at Cornelia's threat and clapped slowly.

"My, you are almost as entertaining as Phobos. Now that I think about it, what did you think of the decoration back at Elyon's palace? Unique, is it not?" She said, her eyes darkening.

Before Taranee could react, Cornelia screamed in fury.

"You will pay for that!" She bellowed throwing a rock at high speed at Will.

Will merely sidestepped the attack and shook her head almost disappointed. Cornelia kept continuing with throwing rocks and making spikes appear out of the ground, yet Will kept dodging them without fail. Taranee saw the wicked grin on both girls' faces and she wondered what they were planning. Suddenly two slabs of stone appeared next to Will and Cornelia brought them together with such force that it was impossible for Will to escape.

A shockwave ensued before the slabs could hit each other and Taranee gasped as she felt the sudden rise in Will's magical power. A cloud of dust appeared where Will had been standing but Taranee did not feel calm. She took some more steps back and shook her head, even if Cornelia was grinning victorious. Clapping suddenly came from Will's place and with each clap, the dust seemed to move. From the dust Will appeared, completely unharmed though there had something changed about her. Now she was enveloped by a dark purple flame, making her hair move slightly on the heated air around her. She was brushing some dust of her clothes and looked uninterested at Cornelia.

"That was fun." She said airily.

Cornelia looked flabbergasted at Will and Taranee truly wondered if Cornelia couldn't see the dark aura around Will, or feel the sudden rise in Will's powers.

Taranee took another step back when Will's eyes made contact with hers. She wanted to run. Why didn't she run? What was stopping her?

"Am I really supposed to be dead?" Will suddenly questioned. "You people look like zombies compared to me."

Her throat was still dry. What was she supposed to say?

"But then again… Zombies aren't as good as the real deal, now is it?" Will said dryly, a small evil grin on her face while her eyes were slightly hidden under her blood red hair. "After all, they don't live, or give you the attention you would expect. You don't have to save them from the clutches of death, since they're death anyway…"

Taranee raised an eyebrow. Will was being unusually cryptic and the tone of her voice was scaring her. What was she trying to say? A slight shiver went over her spine when Will's smile grew bigger. Will's eyes shot at Irma, the grin being more menacing than before.

"They don't need to be saved, like little Chris, begging for help when the all consuming flames came closer, burning the flesh off of his handsome young visage, or the smoke which was filling his lungs. It's so unfortunate you couldn't be there…"

The shock ran through her as realization hit her. Irma hadn't killed Peter. Just like she hadn't killed Chris. It had been Will all along! Will had murdered their siblings.

Gasps came from the whole group and Irma yelled in pain as tears fell down. Taranee herself felt anger building up and she noticed how her hands had caught fire. She clenched them and glared at Will. How could she? Did she truly do all of this? Did she really put them through that agony?

**…**

Now this was worth an Oscar. All the emotions that were swirling through the room were just the tip of the iceberg. If they were this angry with just one revelation, how angry would they be if she added fuel to the fire? A small snicker escaped her lips when she saw that Taranee's hands had caught fire. So weak, so pathetic. This wasn't even misery. She would show them real misery and they would feel but a glimpse of her hatred. They would feel how all-consuming the pain would be, leaving no room for other emotions, just the dark feelings. And besides, it was much more fun hunting angered wild.

The sound of quick breathing came from the oh so pretty blonde and Will raised an eyebrow. So Cornelia was already hyperventilating? This girl was easier to crack than thin ice.

"Don't forget to breath Cornelia." She said calmly, but her voice betrayed her. This was way too much fun and she almost regretted it that it had to end. "Your sister forgot how and we all know how that ended."

Again a roar of anger. This girl had no self-control what so ever. Cornelia's hands shined green and the warning sound of rumbling earth came to her attention. She scoffed slightly. What a pain. If Cornelia created a cave-in than she had to repair the top floors as well.

She could feel how Cornelia's energy was forcing the rocks above her to fall. She could simply cancel the flow of energy, but it was funnier to see Cornelia tiring herself for no reason at all.

The bricks fell down, just like she predicted, and she easily sidestepped them. Cedric's tail had been more difficult to evade.

"I must admit." Will said, her grin threatening to split her face. "That was almost a nicer avalanche than the one that squashed Yan Lin like a bug. Maybe you should add some rolling rocks to it next time."

Her eyes swept from Cornelia's stupefied face to Hay Lin's enraged face. Oh yes, one by one the Guardians would fall to their darker feelings and this was just because of the dead. Will couldn't wait to see their reactions when it came to the living.

"Grandma did you no wrong." Hay Lin bellowed.

So the little Asian wanted to negotiate, rather than fight? Was she better than to fight her friends? The events of nearly a year ago made her think otherwise.

"Oh no? She raised you and I must say she did a pretty poor job at it."

Strike! That was exactly the push Hay Lin did not want to have. The look on Hay Lin's face was darker than Caleb's whenever Will would mention Angelo and it made her smile. She felt how the energy in the air was being pulled to Hay Lin. She raised an eyebrow and prepared for the gale Hay Lin would undoubtedly sent to her.

"Do not speak about my grandmother like that!" She yelled and as expected, released a gale of air towards Will.

Will merely crossed her arms in front of her and went a bit through her knees, absorbing a bit of the energy from the gale and withstanding the blow. Now it was Hay Lin's turn to look utterly surprised. Will wondered if Hay Lin had noticed the sudden disappearance of some of the air's energy or not.

"Hay Lin, you can't be blamed." She said calmly, still not wanting to retaliate. "You were at least raised by someone older than thirty years old. Yan Lin had outlived her life, even you have to admit it."

The tears that streamed down Hay Lin's cheeks were like ice on a hot summer day. Delicious. Her eyebrow raised when Irma went to Hay Lin, hugging the fragile girl and whispering words which would obviously carry false promises and false hope. She had to admit, she thought Irma would have been the one to attack and not Hay Lin. Oh well, anger made people do strange stuff, didn't it?

"You monster."

Ah, there was the name calling. She already wondered when they would hit that level. At least it gave her one good sign. They were losing it. She turned to Taranee, making sure to look as innocent as possible, knowing that Cedric and Elyon were having the biggest fun. Oh well, she had fun seeing Phobos being tortured.

"Now Taranee, I'm sure your parents raised you better than this. I know that Peter tried to." She said, adding Peter just for the extra spunk.

And it worked too. Taranee's mother gasped loudly and Taranee's hair even caught fire. If she continued she would burn her clothes away. Not that she was against having more space to physically harm Taranee, she was hoping to keep this civil.

"Don't you dare…" Taranee started, giving way too much opportunity to let it slide.

"What?" Will asked, her voice filled with glee. "I dare a lot of things Taranee. Just like your brother. Surfing in the winter. Tss. He should have known the risks. Especially after hearing about his dear baby sister's job."

Bang! Another one down. Taranee yelled frustrated at Will and threw a massive fireball. Too bad for Taranee that Will had something else planned than dodging. With a flick of her wrist she teletransported Taranee's parents out of the cage, right in front of her. The sudden change from hatred to shock on Taranee's face was priceless yet Will scowled when Taranee still managed to alter the course of her fireball. It would have been fun if she burnt her own parents to a crisp.

The sight of an angered and scared Taranee made things better though. None of the girls dared to move and Will snickered softly when she noticed the buckling knees of Theresa Cook.

"What's this, Taranee?" She said, placing a hand on Theresa's shoulder. "Can't hit me?"

To her slight surprise, Theresa brushed her off and Lionel glared angrily at her.

"You… You… You monster!" Theresa yelled at her and Will saw how the woman held her hand high.

Will sighed at the choice of words. For such a clever family she had thought to get some cleverer remarks, but no such luck it seemed.

She watched as the hand went down and she grabbed Theresa's wrist with ease, making sure that she would hurt her. Theresa's face showed shock and quickly after that pain as Will slowly pushed her to the ground, nearly breaking her wrist. Theresa's groans of pain were easily audible and Will couldn't suppress a smirk when she heard Miranda giggle. Her eyes went to Theresa's scared ones, fury filling her being.

"You should be ashamed of yourself." She hissed. "A judge like yourself trying to hit a girl of 19 years old and failing to do so."

She pushed Theresa away, making her fall to the ground. Theresa started sobbing and Lionel, after glaring shortly at Will, went to Theresa, trying to help her.

"Mom!"

Taranee made attempts to run at her parents but with another flick of her wrist, Will sent them back to the cage.

"Ah. Ah. Aah." She said teasingly. "Not so fast fire cracker. We're not done here."

Taranee had stopped halfway through the room, her face towards the floor. Her hands caught fire once again and Will watched with glee as her whole being shook. Would she try to attack again or not?

"I've had it."

It was a murmur but Will could clearly hear it. She noticed how the tears dripped down from Taranee's face and Taranee looked up, her face contorted with hatred.

"You should have died long ago! I don't care how you are still alive, but I will end it now!"

Will raised an eyebrow. Taranee seemed to finally be getting serious. Good. The quicker she kicked their asses, the more fun she was going to have. Her eyes shifted to the other girls, finding that they were planning exactly the same.

"Where is your lack of trust in each other?" She asked mockingly. "I was sure I crushed that."

Cornelia smirked stupidly at her. The blonde really thought that she was holding all cards. So much confidence, so little brain.

"You know what they say, the enemy of my enemy is my friend and right now, you're the greatest threat."

"I'm flattered." She sneered. "So this also means you've finally found your definition of teamwork?"

"Yeah and it means kicking your butt to hell!" Irma said.

Will looked with glee as the four of them transformed. They really thought they had a chance. Why hadn't they figured out that she was holding the Heart of Earth as well? Not that she really cared, it made this game much nicer if they did not know it. As she watched the transformation sequence she could easily attack them now, but where was the fun in that? The girls ended up in their attack formation and Will placed her hands on her hips. This was going to be fun.

Irma started the attack by using both hands and directing not only water from her hands, but also from the two streams on both sides of the room at Will. Will smirked and raised her hand, stopping the energy that controlled the water and overruled it, sending it back to Irma. Irma didn't shield herself in time and looked completely shocked when the water torrent crashed on her.

While Will was enjoying herself with Irma, Taranee and Cornelia countered. Taranee fired a bigger fireball than the one before and Cornelia sent a barrage of small stones. Will did not counter them and to the girls' delight, the attacks hit their mark. Will stopped her assault on Irma and span a bit on her place.

Will shook the temporary dizziness away. It was her own fault that those had managed to land a hit on her. She shouldn't have been so preoccupied with trying to drown Irma. Too bad, she really wanted to know how long it would take for Irma to realize that she could use her powers to breathe underwater.

When the world stopped spinning she could see the girls gathered at one place, their arms extended and pointed at her. She could feel the energy massing around them and prepared for a hit. This attack could even be capable of hurting her.

A white energy ball appeared in front of the Guardians and they shot it at Will. Will crossed her arms but felt how the energy was pushing her with an enormous force. She couldn't stop the attack and was blasted into the wall behind her.

**…**

She breathed relieved. She had never thought to see Will again, nor had she thought that Will could be so scary. Actually, she never thought that someone could become so scary at all. The sudden purple flame that had engulfed Will had made her tremble slightly but it was apparently only show. She turned her back to the place where they'd blasted Will into the wall and turned to her parents. They were looking scared at her and Hay Lin could clearly read the anger, fear and disappointment in their eyes. New tears were formed in her eyes and she looked down disgraced. She shouldn't have tried to kill Will in the first place. Her grandmother had to be frowning down upon her. She also had the feeling that her parents would berate her when they got home.

"Mom… Dad…" She whispered, her voice broken by tears. "I'm so sor…"

"How dare you?"

She whirled around to see Caleb seething. He unsheathed his sword and pointed it angrily at them. Hay Lin swallowed softly. She'd never seen Caleb this enraged, not even when Phobos had been the subject. His eyes were almost spitting fire and his face was contorted with rage.

"You will pay!" He growled angrily, taking steps towards them.

Hay Lin prepared herself, although she was less than willing to attack Caleb. No matter what happened, Caleb still was like a brother to her and she didn't want to hurt him. Or at least not kill him.

"That's enough Caleb."

She looked surprised up at Elyon, who was now standing in front of her throne. The smirk on her face made her shiver. Elyon was too calm. They had just destroyed Will as if it was nothing, so why wasn't she worried. Did they have a back-up plan?

Caleb turned to her, his ace still filled with rage.

"How can you say that? They hurt her again!" He bellowed, making it clear that he was keen on protecting Will.

Hay Lin was amazed by Caleb's fierceness in protecting Will. He never showed that kind of devotion with Cornelia. Had he known that she would cheat on him? Or had Will altered his mind?

"Remember our orders?" Elyon growled at him, making it clear that there was more than what they all thought.

Caleb scoffed and sheathed his sword, yet his hand staying on the handle.

"Only interfere on orders." He said dully, but his eyes swept back to them.

Hay Lin felt herself stiffen a bit when Caleb's eyes met hers. They were no longer the friendly green emeralds she remembered. Now that she thought of it, when was the last time she'd looked him in the eyes? She thought of pleading with him, asking him to join them again, when a snicker suddenly filled the room. The grin that appeared on Caleb's face was scaring her and Hay Lin slowly turned her head to the source, not wanting to believe it.

Any normal person would have died by that attack, or at least be too beaten up to snicker. But Will was doing just that. Hay Lin's eyes went wide when she saw how Will slowly made herself loose out of the wall, landing on her feet in the small water stream below her. She didn't look pained or even scratched and the purple fire around her only started to burn brighter, evaporating some of the water below her. She brushed some debris off her shoulders and placed her hands in her hips, turning her head to the hole in the wall.

"Caleb, help me remember that we fix these things." She said nonchalantly. "I really don't want a mess in my castle."

Caleb nodded shortly, his grin plastered on his face.

Meanwhile, Hay Lin was shaking. It was as if Will was sending more and more magical vibrations through the room and the cold she seemed to release was actually attacking her heart. She felt her heart pumping like mad and she saw how her hands were shaking slightly. She had never been this scared before.

"How's that possible?" Cornelia asked, her voice quivering out of fear. "Any human should have been dead by now!"

Will's eyes found Cornelia's and even if she wasn't looking directly at her, Hay Lin shivered. Will's eyes were dark and the only emotion Hay Lin could read and feel in the air was hatred. The smirk that followed the cold look made Hay Lin wish this was a bad dream. This could only mean trouble.

Will nodded her head, almost in courtesy, at Cornelia as black mist appeared around her, slowly making her disappear from sight.

"That's right." She said, her voice ghostly. "Once I was human. Now I am far more."

Hay Lin felt how her legs became numb while her eyes seemed glued at the black mist in front of her. The black mist started to swirl around Will, creating a black tornado of sorts. Powerful shockwaves were blasted through the room and together with Cornelia, Hay Lin made a shield, trying to keep their parents and themselves safe from the strange smoke.

Suddenly a pressure came down on her and she gasped for air. It was the same pressure as she felt on Halloween, when they tried to speak with Elyon. She could see from the corner of her eyes that her parents and Eric were staggering under the pressure. Was this all from Will? Slight moans came from her lips and she fell to her knees, trying to stay conscious under the power when suddenly the pressure disappeared. Will's evil snicker resounded through the room and Hay Lin's eyes widened when the black tornado had ceased.

Will had transformed, but it was not her usual Guardian outfit in which she was clad. Instead she wore a black sleeveless shirt with a diamond shaped cut where her stomach was, showing the tattoo she had. Her hair was standing a bit upwards and her crown was still resting on her head. The tattered black skirt combined with the sword, which seemed to have stayed during the transformation, made her look dangerous and the three raven black wings made Hay Lin think of the stories of angels, however she knew Will was everything but an angel.

She unconsciously took a step backward, sweat dripping past her temples. This was wrong and scary. She wanted to get out. To get away. The sudden idea of teletransporting came to her mind, but as she tried she found out that something was blocking her. Her eyes went back to Will, who slowly shook her head, her grin showing no mercy.

"I despise my human form." Will said, shamelessly flaunting her new outfit. "It makes me feel weak."

Hay Lin gulped. If Will thought she was weak as a human, she really did not want to know the full extent of her transformed state. Was it too late to beg for mercy?

She felt how her desperation was hitting new heights and she raised her hands, even though her mind was screaming at her to stop attacking and bow down. She didn't want to give up. She wanted to stay alive. She wanted to avenge her grandmother's death, no matter the cost. From the corner of her eyes she could see the girls doing the same. If they were to die, they would die together and they would take Will with them, no matter what!

**…**

Okay. Nothing to worry about. So what if Will got an upgrade in powers and a new outfit? They could still take her on. It was four on one. There was no way that they could lose, right?

She looked at her friends, seeing the same scared yet determined look on their faces. So they knew that this was hopeless. Her eyes automatically wandered to Will, whose hands were sparking with lightning. She wondered if Will would torture them before killing them.

No! She shook those thoughts away. What was she thinking! Will was going down and hard. Her hands gathered large amounts of water and she shot them at Will, combined with the strong gusts of Hay Lin.

For a second she really thought that they could freeze Will, but Will's hands suddenly gathered so much electricity that she created a dome around her, before expanding it at a rapid speed, hitting them hard. As Irma shook the dizziness from her mind she felt how Cornelia tried to make vines entangle Will. Will started flying, but Taranee was behind her, shooting fire at her wings. Irma wished for the fireballs to hit but Will turned around, extending her arms and stopping the fireballs in mid-air.

How could she do that? Irma was sure that Will could only use Quintessence. It should be impossible for her to stop Taranee's fire.

She was just in time to dodge the redirected fireballs. Will smirked before shooting lightning at Taranee, hitting her square in the stomach and making her fall to the ground. Irma retaliated once again with a strong jet of water, but Will stopped it half way, redirecting it to Hay Lin. Hay Lin got hit and landed next to Taranee, who was just shaking the dizziness from her mind.

Irma turned back to Will as the latter snickered and Irma hoped that Taranee would cover Hay Lin.

Will was flying with relative ease, something which Irma found difficult to believe with three wings, and she crossed her arms. Her eyebrow was raised and Irma looked back at Cornelia, who's mouth was open in sheer astonishment.

"How do you do that?" She said, making Irma look back at Will.

Will grinned at them and started to twirl with her finger in the air. The air above her finger started to crackle blue, creating a small ring of energy which hovered above her fingers.

"Quintessence is energy, my dear friends." She said patiently, as if she was explaining the alphabet to toddlers. "Energy is in everything, you just need to mold it right."

The ring atop her finger started to color green and Will dropped it. Irma felt how her eyes followed the little ring and to her shock she saw how it sped towards the ground near Cornelia. When the ring touched the ground, vines erupted from it, hitting Cornelia against the wall with a strong force.

The sound of teletransporting caught her ears and Irma turned to see Will flying behind her, hitting her stomach with a fierce kick. She flew backwards a bit by the force and bent over, grabbing her again stomach as well as to try and get some air. She felt how the air moved around her and a second later she felt how Will's foot made contact with her back, kicking her with full speed towards the ground.

She hit the ground hard, tasting blood in her mouth. She tried to get up but her body was protesting. Her arms were numb and her legs felt like jelly. How did Will get this strong?

**…**

She winced when Irma crashed into the ground. But her eyes didn't linger too long on her. She quickly looked back at Will, who landed graciously on the ground. She looked around calmly before teletransporting to Cornelia, who lay an end away. Taranee winced again when Will grabbed Cornelia's hair and pulled her up so that their faces were at the same height. Cornelia's screams were piercing, yet Will's voice cut through like ice.

"I hope you are having fun now!" She hissed forcefully.

With a force of which Taranee thought to be inhuman, Will threw Cornelia towards her, Hay Lin and Irma. The wicked grin on Will's face and the spark of insanity in her eyes were sending shivers up Taranee's spine.

"Cause I'm having a ball!" Will sneered, followed by a laugh of insanity.

She felt Hay Lin shivering next to her and she saw Cornelia sobbing, her hands plugging her ears in a vain attempt to block out Will's merciless voice. The sound of lightning made her look up and she saw how many bolts crackled around them, trapping them in a cage of pure Quintessence. Irma started to squirm and Taranee could see her look of fear being reflected by Irma.

The concerned screams and threats from their families and boyfriends echoed thought the chamber, but, as Taranee watched with fearful eyes, they fell back to mutters as Will walked to them.

She forced her slightly sore body off the floor, watching with angst as Will's fingers ticked past the bars. She saw how her parents hugged each other and she wished she could do something, anything to save them.

"What are you doing?" She said in a vain attempt to sound brave, though her quivering voice was betraying her. "Can't finish what you started?"

Will's glare immediately silenced any other attempt of being brave but she slowly shook her head, a new smirk forming on her lips.

"Contrary to you, _I_ am not sloppy." Will said, her eyes back on their families. "But you still not know the pain of losing everything, but they will help you understand."

Taranee felt her heart throbbing with ache when she realized why their parents and boyfriends were here. They weren't here to see how they died, but the Guardians were here to see how their loved ones died! She walked as close as she could get to the bars and looked pleadingly at Will, even though she was only paying attention to her other prisoners.

"Please." She begged softly, making Will once again look at her.

When her own murky brown eyes found contact with Will's mahogany dark ones, she knew that this was hopeless. Will's eyes only expressed unfathomable hatred and spite. Glee was swimming in them and Taranee knew that this was what she deserved, yet she couldn't help but try.

Next to her, the other girls got up as well, fear instilled in their beings and minds. Taranee could hear how their thoughts were centered around one thing. Trying to keep their parents safe.

"Please, leave them alone." She begged again, seeing how Will's grin only grew wider. "I'll do anything, but don't harm them! Please…"

The others pleaded in the same way but Taranee knew this was hopeless. Yet she was trying. Her parents shouldn't suffer for her mistakes.

Will snickered softly as her hand halted for Taranee's parents. Taranee held her breath when Will spoke.

"What does this remind me off?" She pondered softly, her fingers sparking with lightning. "Ah! Now I remember!"

Her eyes narrowed and lightning sparked from her hair.

"I remember myself begging for mercy, but you weren't very keen on giving it, were you?" She said, her voice filled with spite.

With that Will turned her attention back to the cage, no longer paying attention to their cries and pleads. Her hand started going past the bars once again, making a slight ticking sound when her nails hit the bars.

"Now who to choose?" Will said, her voice slightly singing. "Eeni, mini, maini, moe. I think I choose you."

Taranee's heart came to a standstill when Will's arm rested and pointed at Matt. For a second she thought she would point at Nigel. The scream of fear came from Irma, who was looking with big eyes how Matt was teletransported out of the cage and in front of Will. He immediately backed away, but he found his back hitting the bars of the cage while Will seductively reached out for him and caressed his cheek. Matt had his eyes closed and sweat dripped down his temple.

From behind Will, Taranee could see Caleb grabbing his sword and she was slightly scared by the death glare that he was leveling at Matt. What was Will planning to do?

**…**

He felt how her hand left his cheek and he involuntarily thought back to the kiss she gave him before he passed out. She had gotten better and… NO! What was he thinking! She was obviously planning to use him to torture Irma. He would not let her!

Matt opened his eyes, only to find that Will was holding up a sword for him. He looked questioningly at her, not trying to show her his fear and she smirked lazily at him.

"Though I might seem to be the main executioner here, I am not planning to play with you, Matthew." She said, her voice sending shivers up his spine. "Caleb wanted to have a word with you anyway. But if you think you can take him without a sword…"

He could easily tell that Will meant that she was going to let Caleb hack him up, so he grabbed the sword greedily from her hands. The smirk on her face made him believe he could have a chance. Without a word, Will disappeared and appeared on top of her throne, looking lazily at him. Matt saw Caleb standing near her throne, grinning madly and grabbing his sword.

"Now Matthew, I'll give you a chance." Will's voice rang. "If you manage to kill Caleb, I'll let you live. If not… Well, Caleb, don't make a mess."

Matt swallowed some bile while Caleb merely grinned. He saw Caleb bowing for Will before slowly advancing on him and Matt clumsily unsheathed the sword. He took in Caleb's appearance and looked quickly at Will.

"That's not fair! He has an armor while I don't!" He said, wishing his voice wouldn't sound so scared and childish.

Will snickered softly.

"Show me that you are a man." She said, though she did not interfere.

The words however, seemed to have taken an effect on Caleb. His face reddened and he halted.

"You think you are a man?" He bellowed and Matt started to think that Caleb lost his mind. "Well then, let's fight fair."

Placing his sword in the ground, something that could only be done with some considerable strength, Caleb started to undress himself. Matt watched with growing fear how Caleb's naked torso became visible and he unconsciously started to count the muscles visible. Soon Caleb had managed to free himself of his armor and Matt wished he would put it back on. Caleb was buffer than he could remember and the fact that Caleb was only wearing shorts felt a bit demeaning. Was he taunting him?

Caleb pulled his sword out of the ground and pointed it at him.

"Come at me pretty boy." He sneered. "Let's see if some of my training stayed in that smoker's brain of yours."

Matt was no fool, next to the fact that fear was rooting him to the spot. He could hear Irma threatening Caleb from her cage and he managed to raise his sword in time to block a swing from Caleb. He immediately felt the strength with which Caleb had swung his sword and Matt lost his balance quickly. He jumped out of the way when Caleb swung at him again.

He made some distance and grabbed the sword fiercely, while Caleb laughed fruitlessly.

"I never taught you to flee like a chicken, but then again. I had thought you were a man. Sorry for my mistake."

Matt gritted his teeth and grabbed the sword tighter. Was he calling him a pussy? And Caleb thought he was such a hot shot. He was nothing but a silly boy, lost on Earth and he could only accumulate like that because of _his_ guidance. Or had he forgotten about that?

Caleb took a step closer and Matt lunged forward, thinking to hit him, when Caleb turned his body in a way that made Matt miss him by inches. Caleb then punched him hard in his gut, making him lose his breath. A hard kick against his knees made him fall onto the ground, but he resented the pain and rolled away, barely missing the razor sharp sword.

He heard Caleb scoff but he ignored it. He jumped to his feet and struck again when he felt a piercing pain in his chest. His eyes widened as his vision got blurry. He could barely make out Caleb's grinning face and he slowly registered Irma's cry of pain. He looked down when he felt that Caleb was pulling something out of his body and he saw how a bloodstained sword left him. More blood seeped out of his wound and his head became light. Was he dying?

His head became heavy but despite that he looked back one more time. He tried to focus and through his blurry sight he saw the tearstained face of Irma. She shouldn't cry, she was too beautiful for that.

**…**

Her knees buckled and she fell to the floor, her hands before her mouth. She'd never thought that Caleb would… That he would kill Matt. Her eyes went to Irma, who was sobbing uncontrollably next to her. She slowly laid an arm around her, hugging her closely. She could easily pick up Irma's thoughts and all of them revolved around killing Will and Caleb for what they'd done. She bit her tongue and rested her head on Irma's shoulder. She had to calm down. She couldn't take on Will on her own and she had the feeling that this was just the beginning of the agony that Will had planned for them.

Will's laughter made her look up and she saw how Will slowly descended from her throne, while Caleb was busy dressing himself again. Shivers ran over her spine as Will traced circles on Caleb's broad chest and for some reason she felt disgusted when she kissed him sensually. When Will broke the kiss she lazily touched Matt with her foot, before pushing him away.

"Serves him right for cheating on you." Caleb said, his eyes still a little blank.

"You were formidable, as always." Will commented, before Irma yelled through the room.

"YOU BITCH!" She yelled and Taranee was sure she would injure her throat like this. "You will pay for what you've done!"

Will snickered softly before a large spark came from the cage and hit Irma.

"How I would love it to fight you now, I'm just getting started." Will said merciless before Taranee's heart jumped to her throat.

As Will finished her sentence, a new sound of teletransporting was heard and this time, her parents were standing outside the cage. She got up and looked scared at them, knowing that Will was planning to torture them.

"Don't you dare!" She yelled, but a shock of the cage made her cry out in pain.

She fell to the ground, where Hay Lin was quick to help her up. She quickly regained focus and looked in fear from Will to her parents.

"Good day, Mr. and Mrs. Cook." Will said in mock courtesy. "After this rather amusing start, you must know what I'm planning for you, am I right?"

Her father went to stand protectively before her mother, glaring Will down.

"You thought that was amusing?" Her father hissed scared and angered.

"Amusing, entertaining, funny. You give it a name." Will said dismissively. "The point is that we are gathered here today to see you two be punished for your daughter's deeds. Are there any objections?"

"I object! They didn't do anything!" Taranee yelled, knowing Will wouldn't listen.

Will nodded her head slowly, but her eyes stayed fixed on her parents. She calmly walked around them, her wings moving at the reawakened purple flame that engulfed her.

"True." She said coldly. "But they are perfect for hurting you. Perfect for you to feel how I felt. And how I feel now."

Will took several steps back and Taranee held her breath. What was she planning to do?

"Tell me, Mr. and Mrs. Cook." Will said calmly. "Do you know what element your dear daughter controls?"

Taranee shook her head, mouthing the word 'no'. She did not want to see her parents burn. 'Please,' she begged in her mind, 'don't let them die by my element. Not by fire, please.'

She saw her parents looking afraid at each other, before slowly shaking their heads. They didn't want to answer and Taranee hoped Will wouldn't show them what it was. Or worse, force her to attack her own parents.

"No? I was sure she showed what she could do earlier." Will said, almost sounding surprised. "Oh well, then I just have to show you, right?"

Lightning crackled around her right fist and Taranee watched in awe and fear how the lightning arched to the fire pots in the far corners of the room, lighting them with a blast. Some flames flew from the pots to her and started dancing around Will, who merely smirked at them.

"Beautiful isn't it?" She said, almost seeming to be in awe of the fire around her. "So warm yet so deadly. But you know, there is a fire worse than Earthly fire. Do you know what I mean?"

Now even Taranee was at a loss. A fire worse than normal fire? What was Will talking about? No, she didn't want to know. For once she was happy with the lack of knowledge. Too bad Will didn't seem to agree with that.

Her parents shook their heads slowly, though they took some steps back when the flames grew bigger. Taranee could feel that something was wrong with it. They were warm but they were consuming while they weren't. As if the fire was contradicting itself. It was giving her a headache yet she ignored the thumping when Will's hand shot at her parents while she spoke.

"Hell fire."

Taranee's eyes widened in shock when she heard those words. It was impossible. It had to be impossible. Hell fire was just a myth, nothing more. Fire that burnt without consuming anything. Tears shot in her eyes when the fire touched her parents, engulfing both in demonic flames. The screams they released were piercing her heart and head and she fell to her knees, placing her hands against her ears and hoping she could block the heartbreaking screams of her parents. She wanted to close her eyes, trying to block the scene, but something was stopping her. Her eyes shifted temporarily to Will, who was looking at her with a crazy grin on her face.

"Don't think you can escape this agony so easily." She said, her voice easily audible through the bone crushing screams.

Tears fell down her eyes as she jumped up and tried to get to her parents. She didn't care for the lightning blocking her path. All she cared for was trying to save her parents from this agony. First she extended her arms, trying to make the fire stop, but she was completely ignored and the fire even seemed to burn stronger. She then tried to teletransport to them, but she found her power blocked. As a final attempt she tried to run to them, trying to run past the bars of lightning and she would have done that if it wasn't for Irma and Cornelia stopping her. She tried to fight them off, but Irma pulled her into a hug, making her face the other side of the room. The screams however were still ringing through the chamber and Taranee felt how her knees buckled again. She was berating herself for being too weak to save her parents or her brother. She hated herself but she hated Will more. She would find a way to hurt Will, that she promised.

**…**

Why couldn't she drag her eyes away? Why was she so engrossed with the eternal flames that engulfed Taranee's parents? Her eyes darted to Taranee, who was sobbing uncontrollably in Irma's embrace. Tears shot in her own eyes as she figured out that this was the fate for everyone. Even for her parents.

The screams died away and Hay Lin found herself staring at an even disappointed Will. The fire was still burning, but Taranee's parents had stopped screaming. They just lay there and Hay Lin wasn't sure if they were alive or not. She saw Taranee looking up and turning her head while Will slowly made her way to Taranee's parents.

"Tss. They didn't last long." She drawled. "I'd thought they were a bit more fireproof."

With that the fire seemed to change and she had to hold her stomach when she saw how the fire was finally consuming the two bodies in rapid speed. The Cooks had burnt to death.

Taranee's scream was piercing and she looked surprised and perhaps even slightly scared at her African-American friend. Taranee's face was contorted with hatred and fire was burning in her hands. But to Hay Lin's pure shock, she saw a small purple flame at the place where Taranee's heart was supposed to be. Her eyes went from Taranee to Will and back again. The flame had the same color as the flame that enveloped Will. Was Will contaminating them?

"I'll kill you for that!" Taranee bellowed as she tried to send her fire at Will, which was immediately doused after it left the cage.

Will's eyes found Taranee's and Hay Lin felt in the air the pure pleasure Will was having.

"Now you understand how I felt." Will said softly, her voice almost filled with compassion. "But this is just the beginning. Soon they will follow you and you will follow your parents."

Taranee yelled in fury while Will turned her back to them, choosing her next victim from the cage. Not wanting to see who she was planning to kill next, Hay Lin went to hug Taranee and tried to calm her down. She would only kill herself quicker if she tried to jump at Will.

She felt how Taranee writhed in her grasp but then relented and she felt how Taranee's tears fell past her shoulders. She hushed the girl, not trying to imagine how she would have felt when Irma's gasp made her regret that thought.

She turned her head to see her parents being teletransported out of the cage. Her first instinct was to run at them, but now it was Taranee who was stopping her.

"NO! MOM! DAD!" She yelled in fear and she could see the angst in her parents eyes, yet their love for her was visible as well.

"Mom! Dad!" Will copied childishly. "How cute. So you do know how to care. Too bad you figure that out too late."

"Wh-What will you do with us?" Her father stammered slightly, taking a fighting position in front of her mother. "We-We did you n-no harm."

Will merely shrugged, taking some steps to them. Hay Lin tried to stand up, but Taranee forced her back to her knees. Not her parents. Not them, please no.

"The Cooks didn't do anything as well and you know how that ended." Will replied casually, already raising her finger.

Hay Lin watched in fear as her father lunged at Will, only to be caught by her risen hand. Dread flooded her when she saw the mischievous sparkle in Will's eyes. She saw how her father tried to free himself and she bit her tongue when her mother tried to help him by hopelessly punching at Will as well. Will caught her fist with her other hand and she slowly forced her parents to the ground.

"Don't!" Hay Lin yelled scared, but Will cackled evilly.

"They are brave, your parents." She said, her eyes completely focused on her. "Too bad you never inherited it."

Suddenly Hay Lin felt how the air started to twist around Will and the awful feeling of vacuum washed over her. Suddenly she heard an awful plopping sound which made her stomach turn. The screams of her parents quickly followed and now it was Hay Lin's turn to grab for her ears. She tried to use her magic to create a space around her that would block the screams, but she felt how something interfered and the screams hit her brains. Many tears flooded her eyes and her throat was burning as she screamed for her parents.

"Mom! Dad!" She yelled again, watching in agony how their hands had exploded because of an airless space Will had created around them.

Will was planning on killing them by placing them bit by bit in a makeshift void, imploding them slowly.

She tried to struggle loose out of Taranee's embrace, feeling how the hatred Taranee had now seemed to fill her. Quickly Irma added to the hug, telling her to calm down but how could she? Her parents were being sucked into a void and all she could do was watch?

Another plopping sound, followed by a new scream of pain followed and Hay Lin watched in horror how the right arms of her parents disappeared in a bloody mess. More tears came from her and she tried to bite herself loose. She had to try something to stop Will!

She focused on her powers, trying to create a tornado at Will but she found her powers blocked. Her eyes went to Will, whose dark flame was burning brightly and whose eyes were shining with glee. She gritted her teeth as many threats filled her head, but for what reason?

Now a variety of plopping sounds followed by heart wrenching screams echoed through the room and all Hay Lin could do was to watch how more limbs of her parents disappeared. They were losing huge amounts of blood yet they were still conscious, now laying on the ground with only half of their left arm and two stumps as legs left. They looked so hopeless, yet Hay Lin watched with a bit pride how her father tried to get to her mother. How he tried to comfort her as they were dying.

"Mom… Dad…" She said as new tears flowed from her eyes. "I'm so sorry. So sorry."

Will's merciless laughter filled her ears and temporarily pushed the screams of her parents away. It was cold and vicious and Hay Lin shook her head, trying to lose the sound. The last plopping sound echoed through the room and her eyes became big. Her parents were gone. Only a big mess of blood lay on the floor at which Will raised her lip in disgust.

"Should have thought that through." She heard Will say nonchalantly. "Oh well."

With a wave of her hands the water, which was streaming past the walls, filled the floor, washing the blood away. Will clasped her hands but Hay Lin kept looking at the place where her parents had been. Tears kept filling her eyes and she broke from Taranee's and Irma's embrace. She grabbed her knees and closed her eyes, her powers suddenly working and cutting all sounds off around her. She wanted to be alone. She wanted to die.

**…**

Winds swirled viciously around Hay Lin as she noticed how a small purple flame took place in Hay Lin's chest. She looked scared from Hay Lin to Will, who only raised an eyebrow. Was she planning on killing Hay Lin now? Irma tried to reach out for Hay Lin's shoulder, but the winds roughly pushed her away.

"Hay Lin!"

She cried hopelessly at Hay Lin, who seemed to completely ignore her as more tears got caught by the winds.

"Stop the drama. She can't kill herself, that would destroy my fun." Will sneered.

She turned her head to Will, who glared back without even being phased. Irma started to shiver when a creepy grin made its way to Will's lips and her eyes widened when the sound of teletransporting made her parents appear outside the cage. She wanted to yell at them, but her mouth went dry and her heart stopped beating. Not her parents. Not them.

"Stay back!"

She could easily recognize her father's demanding and slightly scared tone. She saw how he held a gun pointed at Will and she wondered why he hadn't pulled it out sooner. He could have saved Hay Lin's or Taranee's parents or even Matt! Despite those thoughts, she still walked up to the rim of the cage, her mouth slightly open in fear.

Will raised an eyebrow and Irma knew what she would do. She shook her head slowly, mouthing 'No' to her father. Will could make things live with her powers. She would use his gun against him.

"Why haven't you pulled it out sooner?" Will sneered as she took a step closer. "What cop does not want to save the lives of innocent people?"

The sound of a shot being fired boomed through the room and Irma even saw Elyon shifting uncomfortably in her throne. Caleb grabbed once again for his sword and Irma watched how blood seeped out of Will's shoulder. There was no sign of pain and Irma doubted that Will even winced when the bullet had hit her. Her eyes were spitting fire and the flame around her grew even more. Irma watched how her father took some steps back, pushing her mother behind him.

"Stay away from us." He growled and somewhere Irma felt relieved.

Will wasn't invincible. She got hit by the bullet and she even started bleeding. She could die, just like them. A small smile escaped her lips and she could hear Taranee laughing insanely.

"You're not so invincible as you thought you were!" Taranee taunted, something Irma would have cried as well if she wasn't fearing for her parents' life.

A new bolt of lightning sprang from the cage and hit Taranee in her stomach. Taranee lunged back and fell on the ground, nearly hitting the bars behind her. Will merely chuckled as she looked at the wound. To Irma's utter amazement she saw how a very familiar pink aura enveloped Will. Will's eyes shortly shined pink before her smile only grew bigger. She started to move the arm, which her father had injured but to her shock she saw how the bullet hole was closing and how the bullet came from it. Will caught the bullet with her other hand, looking bored at it before throwing it behind her.

"That wasn't very nice." She said mockingly.

Irma looked petrified at her parents and she saw how her father's hand was slightly trembling as he pointed his gun once again at Will. Why hadn't he aimed for her head?

"St-Stay back!" He ordered. "Next time I'll sh-shoot your head!"

Will chuckled.

"You already tried that, didn't you." She whispered darkly. "But your aim was a little off."

Irma gasped loudly. Her father had tried to kill Will. Why had he missed? He always said that he had a solid aim, so why not now?

"Quintessence."

Her throat went dry when her father's gun shot out his hands and landed behind Will on the floor. Will shook her head and slowly walked around her parents.

"Tsk, playing with toys in such a dangerous situation." She scolded mockingly. "No wonder that Irma is such a mess."

"My daughter is ten times the woman you'll ever be." Her mother sneered back, giving Irma a sense of pride which she sadly thought to be undeserved.

She had thought that Will would hit her mother, but instead she chuckled ever so lightly and shook her head.

"She might be." Will admitted, making Irma anxious for the rest of the sentence. "But you will never see it."

"NO!"

Her throat was ripped open as she yelled out the word of denial, but her eyes didn't seem to accept it. The reality was that Will had placed her hand against her mother's stomach with an inhuman force, making her mother fall backwards to the ground. Her father tried to stop Will, assuming a battle position but Will was too quick and did the same thing to her father. Irma watched with tears as they fell down, but she felt relieved when she found that her parents were still breathing. Will just punched them a bit hard, but otherwise they were okay.

"Pop quiz!" Will suddenly yelled, her grin worrying Irma tremendously. "Name two important body liquids."

Irma looked blankly at Will. What was she trying? Why was she bothering with something as stupid as that? Why didn't she just drown her parents? That way Irma could start screaming and hating her. This was plain confusing and vague. From the corner of her eyes she saw how her parents tried to get up, but her mother screamed in pain when she sat up. Her father only groaned and Irma's eyes widened. Will was controlling the water in their bodies!

"No one?" Will said nonchalantly. "I guess biology was my strongest subject. Normally I would answer water to this question, but let's be a little more specific shall we?"

Irma's mind was racing, trying to figure out what liquids would be harmful in the human body, but the only thing that entered her mind was blood. She really should have paid more attention at biology.

She shook her head, dismissing any distracting thoughts. She had to find a way to protect her parents! Her mother cried again and Will snickered, seemingly finding the pain she was inflicting hilarious. How was Will hurting her mother if she didn't do any specific moves? Will's hands didn't indicate any sign of magic. How was she doing it and how could Irma stop it?

"The first and foremost liquid would be blood." Will said calmly, walking at Irma's parents. "But that would be no fun. But then we have this nice little liquid, deadly when not contained. I think you are familiar with it. It's called gastric acid which is usually contained in one's stomach."

Irma's eyes widened in fear when she looked back at her parents. Both had paled considerably and her mother's face held only pain. Her father was gritting his teeth, but Irma could see the pain he was enduring. Tears ran over her cheeks as she realized that there was no way to save them. No way to stop the acid from reaching their vital organs. She screamed out for them, hoping they could still hear her. She wished Will had just drowned them, that way they didn't have to suffer that much.

"Stop it!" She screamed at Will. "Please make it stop! Don't let them suffer, please!"

Will's eyes found hers and Irma could only read death in them. There was no hope. Not for her parents, not for her.

"If they tried to get up, the acid would spread quicker and…" Will said lazily before both her parents screamed in agony.

Tears blurred her sight but Irma could see how their backs started to color green, some spots even started to smoke. Her own screams echoed those of her parents and her heart fell apart. She lost everyone. Chris, Matt and now her parents. Slowly she saw liquid dripping down her parents' sides and she casted her eyes down. She did no longer wish to see her parents. Their screams died away and the sour smell of acid caught her nose. She felt how her stomach turned and how she tried her best not to throw up. She felt arms around her shoulders and through the curtain of tears she saw the blonde hair of Cornelia. Cornelia, the one who made them betray Will. The one who screwed up her life. The one who made her lose her parents and boyfriend.

The anger, which was meant for Will and, to a lesser degree, Caleb, was now directed at Cornelia. She clenched her fists and punched Cornelia, who only managed to sidestep her by an inch. Taranee tackled her and tried to keep her calm.

"Get off of me!" Irma growled angered. "This is all her fault! If she hadn't gone stripping for Phobos, we wouldn't have been in this shit!"

Taranee's attempts started to lessen and Irma could see that Taranee was contemplating on letting her go. She didn't wait for Taranee to finally decide what to do and blasted her away with a water blast, before jumping at Cornelia again. Cornelia was looking in utter surprise at her when Irma found her hands clasped around the blonde's neck. She started to slowly choke the monster when Cornelia's green glowing hands pushed her away and vines appeared, holding her legs with such a force that Irma quickly lost the feeling in them.

"What are you doing?" Cornelia yelled enraged. "She's the enemy, not me!"

Irma breathed heavily and glared at the blonde when suddenly the vines burnt away. The blood started rushing through her legs and they tingled as she tried to stand again. Her gazed crossed Taranee's and she saw the grim determination and hatred in her eyes as well.

"You were the one who made us attack Will!" Taranee yelled enraged, sending a fireball at Cornelia.

Cornelia looked stunned at Taranee and received the full hit of the fireball, making her skid to the rim of the cage.

"You weren't against the plan!" Cornelia retorted, sending bricks at the two of them.

Irma managed to block them with a water shield while Taranee made some impressive maneuvers to dodge them, seeing that their movement space was limited. She wanted to retaliate when new shocks came from the cage, not only shocking them but also creating an extra wall between Cornelia and the rest of them.

Irma turned angered to Will, who was scowling at them.

"As much as I like it to see you guys try to kill each other, you are trying to cut my fun. I still have the Hales, so please, behave. Look at Hay Lin. At least she knows when a situation is hopeless." She said, her voice holding mirth.

"I'll kill you!" Irma retorted in blind anger. "I'll make you wish you bled to death the day we left you behind!"

Will chuckled merely, shaking her head.

"Irma, you cannot kill me. Your father failed. Kandrakar failed and you will fail as well. Now be a good prisoner and shut up."

Her anger reached a new level and she created a big ball of water. She fired it with all her willpower and magic at Will, who only raised her hand and redirected it back at her. Irma could not block the hit and received the full blow, making her fall backwards to the ground. The last thing she heard was Will's icy snicker before her head hit the floor and everything went black.

**…**

Cornelia watched with fearful eyes as Irma fell to the ground, hitting her head hard against the stone floor. What had gotten into her? Why was she so angry at her while Cornelia only did what she thought was right? Wasn't it Yan Lin who told them to follow their heart? Irma must have gone mental when she lost her parents, there was no other reason for this behavior.

Her eyes went to Taranee, who looked vengeful at her. Taranee was thinking the same, but why? Neither of them had complained when she proposed and Cornelia thought they were just a bunch of hypocrites. All of them were glad when Will was gone. Everything went back to how it used to be. Her as leader and the rest following her obediently.

"You should thank me, you know."

Her gaze traveled back to Will, whose face was close to the bars of their cage. She recoiled back and Will snickered slightly, probably because of her reaction. But Will didn't understand. She didn't want to get polluted like the other three were. She had polluted them with that purple flame, but she would stand tall. She would not fall to Will's powers. She would prove that Will was just a big child, mad because she had been ignored.

"You just want to kill me yourself." She sneered back.

"Ah, I know. My plans are predictable." Will replied, bowing her head as if she were in shame.

Cornelia's raised an eyebrow. Even she had to admit that Will's plans were never predictable. Was Will mocking her?

Those thoughts were quickly abandoned when she saw Will walking calmly to the cage, which now only held her parents, Nigel and Eric. She could see how both Nigel and Eric were clinging at each other, fear in their eyes. She was slightly impressed that they hadn't wet themselves already. But then her eyes were dragged to her parents. She saw how her father looked darkly at Will while he tried to protect her mother, but after what Cornelia had witnessed, she knew it was hopeless.

Cornelia found herself praying and hoping that Will would choose Eric or Nigel. Her prayers weren't heard when she saw how her parents were teletransported out of the cage. Her mother immediately shrieked and ran away and somewhere Cornelia wished for her parents to be a bit more courageous. She shook that thought quickly away when Will teletransported in front of her mother, forcing her to stop.

"Ah, don't run on me now." Will said teasingly. "You don't want to miss your funeral, do you?"

Will grabbed Cornelia's mother and threw her back to Cornelia's father. Cornelia tried to raise some vines to soften her mother's fall, but she found that the vines didn't obey her. Her eyes swept to Will who smiled menacingly at her. Her parents had taken a hold of each other and were looking scared at Will, who was now casually walking back to them.

"I could, of course, drop an avalanche on you." Will contemplated, a crazy sparkle in her eyes. "But that would be rather unoriginal."

"D-Don't ha-harm us, p-please." Her father stammered. "We're sorry f-for wh-what Co-Cornelia d-did to y-you."

Will laughed shortly and fruitlessly.

"Sorry? You?" She said her voice growing colder. "No, it's too late to feel sorry. The only thing you should be sorry for is that your daughter is careless and sloppy."

She had to suppress the urge to hold the bars of the cage as Will started to twirl her finger, just like she did when she created the fire in the firepots. Lightning followed and Will's hand went to her parents.

"No!"

Her cry fell to deaf man's ears as the lightning contacted with her parents. They cried in pain and Cornelia felt the tears prickle at the rim of her eyes. The lightning stopped and her parents fell to their knees. For a second Cornelia thought they were fine, except for their hair which was slightly smoking.

Suddenly Cornelia felt how the energy of the Earth started to swirl around her parents and she watched in shock how the skin of her parents started to look bark-like. Their hair became thicker, vine-like even and the fear she saw in their eyes disappeared when their faces became wood. Their hair started to carry leaves and their hands sprouted flowers.

Her hands went to her mouth as she gasped loudly, tears falling down. She could still hear her parents. They were screaming in pain, but now she was the only one who could hear them. Her powers were used against her. She copied Hay Lin and placed her hands against her ears, her eyes already being blurred by the tears she was shedding.

The screams stopped and she heard Will breathing relaxed.

"I must say, I'm getting better at this." She joked, but Cornelia did not see the humor in it.

She clenched her fist and glared at Will.

"Why did you turn them into trees?" She said, her voice ice cold.

Will didn't seem to be impressed by her coldness and yawned a bit.

"I was getting tired of slaying so many people. It got boring, you know?" She joked again. "Besides, you've got too more who want to take revenge on you and who am I to stop them? Seeing that I'm going to have the greatest fun after this."

Cornelia shook her head. Who of them wanted to take revenge on her? She could understand Will, but the others? It didn't make sense. Cedric nor Miranda would have had enough reason to do so and she didn't think Elyon would try. They were friends, right?

"You know Corny, Caleb told me about his hidden wish to become a lumberjack." Will said devilishly. "And he wanted to try it at least once."

Her eyes widened as her look went from Will to Caleb. Caleb's eyes were dark and a grin made place on his face, a grin that didn't suit him. It was way too dark for him.

"You wouldn't dare…"

She knew it was an empty treat. A hopeless thought. Caleb had already proven that he could kill those who betrayed Will and she was sure he would prove it once again. Caleb sneered at her as he took steps towards her parents. She could hear her parents whisper in fear and she believed Will could hear them too, or she was just reading Cornelia's face, as Will's face split open with another grin. What was it with villains and grinning anyway? She had seen Will's expression change from pissed to gleeful in a matter of seconds and it kept repeating.

"You shouldn't have cheated me." Caleb hissed angered. "You shouldn't have betrayed Will. You shouldn't have tortured her."

"And what do you call this?" Cornelia yelled back in a sad attempt to keep him from her parents. "Do you call this fair? My parents are innocent!"

Caleb grinned at her as he unsheathed his sword, thought when he spoke she saw Will mouthing the same words.

"Collateral damage."

"NO!"

She cried when the sword swung at the bark of what had once been her father's leg. She could hear him scream in agony and her breathing quickened. Her heart pounded like crazy and her head became a bit light as the screams of pain rang through her head. Her hands were no longer blocking out the screams and the screams of her mother, who was screaming in worry, added to the agony she was feeling. They didn't realize how much they were hurting her. Their deaths as well as their torture were jabs in her heart.

The cracking sound made her wipe the tears away and with pain she saw her father fall to the ground, his screams disappearing from her mind. She only heard her mother sob loudly and she found herself echoing those sobs loudly. Will cackled softly and Cornelia watched in pain as Caleb raised his sword again, now aimed at her mother's bark.

"Please… Don't…" She sobbed.

"Caleb. Stop."

Her eyes traveled to Will, who was frowning at Caleb. Caleb only sighed and sheathed his sword, not questioning Will's orders. Will suddenly looked her in the eyes and Cornelia lost all hope that Will would spare her mother.

"Don't think I'm helping you, Cornelia." Will sneered. "I just want to give Elyon a chance for revenge."

Cornelia's heart stopped as Elyon teletransported next to Will. Elyon looked grimly at her and Cornelia shook her head. Not Elyon… Elyon was too soft to do something like this.

"You… You wouldn't…" She stammered. "You can't!"

Elyon cracked a grin at her.

"I wouldn't?" She said darkly. "The same as I thought that you wouldn't kill me for my power?"

Cornelia swallowed and took a step back. Elyon was certainly planning to kill her mother. Instead of fear she felt hatred bubbling up and she turned to Will.

"You! This is your fault!" She bellowed. "You didn't die! You contaminated her!"

Will chuckled lightly as she brushed through Elyon's hair.

"Yes, she did fall into the darkness because of me." She admitted. "But it was thanks to her that I'm alive."

Cornelia shook her head, not wanting to believe it. Elyon saved Will? This was just a joke. One big joke from the universe. Elyon didn't like Will, so why would she save her? Elyon glowered at her and Cornelia felt how she was losing it… She was going insane. The loss of Phobos, the loss of her father… It was all becoming too much to handle.

"You're a fool, Cornelia." Elyon whispered. "And this is how you will pay."

The screams of her mother rang through her head and Cornelia grabbed for it, trying to stop the increasing headache as well as the cries of pain. Her eyes lit up by the fire that was engulfing her mother's branches. The leaves curled up in no time and the flowers disappeared in a second. The screams of her mother were bloodcurdling and she resumed sobbing. As the screams started to ebb away, something snapped in her. She didn't care anymore. She had no one left. Her family was dead, her boyfriend as well and her friends were more likely to be her enemy. She was alone and she didn't care anymore. She would kill Will for destroying her life.

Her sobs turned to laughter. First soft before she grew accustomed to the feeling of insanity. She didn't care who was with her or against her. All she cared for was Will's head on a silver platter.

**…**

She raised an eyebrow at Cornelia's sudden laughter. So she finally snapped. Will had figured that one of them would snap to insanity and it had been a tossup between Cornelia and Hay Lin and it was Cornelia who fell.

She looked rather satisfied at her work. All four of them were falling to the same darkness which she ruled, too bad that they would never learn to love it. She looked satisfied at Elyon, who looked questioningly at Cornelia, but Will shook her head. Cornelia's insanity wouldn't be such a problem, because if there was a way to stop insanity, it would be fear. And she knew how to scare people.

"Great, Will broke her." She heard Irma sneer and she found her eyes looking in terrified blue ones.

Irma duck away behind Taranee and Will grinned only more. They were so easily to break, so weak. They felt her agony yet they didn't understand the darkness. Not that it would matter.

"Now… What to do with Eric and Nigel?"

This stopped Cornelia's insane laughter and it got not only the attention of Taranee, but from Hay Lin as well. She made sure that Hay Lin would hear her. No one would block her out, not anymore. Hay Lin looked up, tears still wetting her face. How pathetic.

"NO!"

Her attention went to Eric, who shivered in the cage when her eyes found him. Nigel was standing right beside him, but he was shivering like a leaf as well.

"No?" She asked him sweetly. "Don't worry I've got something nice for you in mind."

She turned back to the Guardians, who were all looking at her with spite. They wished her death, yet they would be the ones to embrace it. They were too weak and once she'd taken their powers, Kandrakar would fall next.

**…**

"So we have a deal?"

She looked pitiful at the body of one of her oldest friends. She'd never thought that she would speak to her again, let alone negotiate, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

The grin of the woman in front of her slightly resembled the grin of the threat that was nearing Kandrakar, but now it held something reassuring in it.

"My, Kandrakar must be pretty desperate to come to little old me. Especially if they are sending my dear friends."

She could feel Cassidy scowl beside her.

"Listen Rissa." She sneered. "I died twice. Once thanks to you and the latest was indirectly caused by Will…"

"I thought you died in a car crash? That is hardly Will's fault is it? Unless your head was with Yannie here, cause else I don't see how Will would have killed you."

"Don't act witty Nerissa." Kadma replied coldly. "It all comes to this. Do you want to help us and receive Kandrakar's mercy or not?"

Nerissa chuckled lightly.

"I don't know…" She said teasingly. "What do you think Halinor?"

She swallowed softly when Nerissa's grey eyes found hers. Why was she being so difficult? Why couldn't she just help them, like the old times?

"I think you should accept the offer." She said calmly. "Will is too big of a threat to be allowed to run loose."

Nerissa chuckled again and thoughtfully rubbed her chin.

"It is true that her ideals clash with mine." She said slowly, before a grin formed on her face. "Oh well. You know what they say. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. And we are friends, right?"

Halinor replied with a wry smile.

"Right."

_**[A/N] That was one damn long chapter! About 49 pages… Thank Bloodprince1234 for this… He asked me to make it a long one, so voila! Also thank you Titantnt for giving me a sweet idea for next chapter! So short summary: Cornelia turned insane, Irma and Taranee blame Cornelia and Hay Lin is a wreck. Oh! And their families are dead! Good night and don't forget to review! (Or I might want to send Will to you for a little 'chat')**_


	15. Chapter 14 Let the hunt begin

**Chapter 14 Let the hunt begin**

Eric shook his head. This was just a nightmare, one big insane nightmare. But if it was just a nightmare, then why did he feel Nigel pinching his arm? Why could he feel his head thumping at the rhythm of his heart? He swallowed once more when Will's dark eyes swept over him. What was she planning?

He felt how his back hit the back of the cage. He just wished none of this ever happened. He couldn't exactly believe that Hay Lin, or any of the other girls, tried to kill Will, but none of them had denied it. They'd even confirmed it when they tried to threaten to kill Will _again_.

"You know… I hadn't counted on them being here." Will's merciless voice rang. "They are pretty much an unexpected addition. Shall I kill them like Caleb killed Matthew, or should I give them the same treatment as dear old Phobos?"

The screams of the girls were unbearable. They were so full of hatred and spite that even Eric felt his heart stop for a moment. As if that hatred was meant for him, even though he knew it wasn't. What was Will trying to do?

Without a warning the ground started to rumble. He felt how Nigel grabbed his arm beside him and in any other situation, Eric would have pulled away. Now he clutched himself to Nigel, ignoring the awkward position they were in. The wind started to pick up and he could hear how the water of the small rivers started to whirl. His eyes caught the glance of an explosion when the fire in the pots started to rise.

His gaze returned to the girls. What was happening to them? All of them were looking like they could kill and their bodies were slightly glowing in the colors of, which Eric presumed, their respective elements. The sudden rise in power was so sudden that it broke Will's electric cages and freed them.

The look on Will's face was interesting. Her face showed that she hadn't expected this. Surprise was written all over her and for a second Eric thought he even saw a glimmer of fear in her eyes. Was it possible for the girls to win this?

**…**

"I can't believe we managed."

Tibor's eyes went to the younger cat woman, who looked delighted as well as disgusted at the same time. He sighed as his eyes wandered back to the five Aurameres. The Quintessence Auramere was still floating above the other four, but the other four elemental Aurameres had grown in size and were glowing dimly.

"Our Heart had temporarily forgotten about the Aurameres." He said gravely. "We could not stop the flow of her own Auramere, but at least we could boost the other four."

Luba scoffed, glaring at the five Aurameres.

"Tsk. I still don't like this. We actually had to aid those traitors to stop the worst of them." She said indignantly.

With that new sparks came from the Auramere of Quintessence, indicating for them to leave. Tibor and Luba hurried out of the room, knowing that the Guardian of Quintessence had reinstated the protection around the Aurameres.

"I know, but it was the Oracle's will." Tibor replied, acting as if nothing happened. "But I still hope he will manage to finish the spell in time."

Luba let a cat-like snicker.

"Ironic way to put it, but yes. I hope he will succeed in time as well. It took us a full year to reach the place where the spell was hidden and now he needs time to fully chant it. I just hope that the Guardians will defeat their leader, before their leader decides to attack Kandrakar." She said darkly.

"All we can do is wait." Tibor answered calmly.

He saw how the face of his compatriot darkened.

"If they come here, know that I will not accept them." She said before walking away.

Tibor sighed again and looked sadly at the Viewing Pool. The Oracle was at his quarters, chanting the spell to stop the Guardian Leader. None of them had the hope that the Guardians could stop their leader, but they had to stall. The longer, the better.

"Do your best Guardians, because I don't think you will enjoy dying twice." He said gravely.

**…**

What was going on? Where did the sudden rise in power come from? And why wasn't Will doing anything? Elyon looked slightly scared at Will, who seemed to be petrified. Was she really scared?

Her eyes went back to the Guardians, who were still glowing with the color of their representative element. They had all screamed in rage when Will had taunted them again, but the sudden rise in power was unsuspected. Even if they were feeding of their own hatred, they shouldn't increase this much in power.

Taranee started with an opening attack. The fireball she fired was way bigger than Elyon had ever seen and it hit Will straight on. Will never tried to block or whatever. She just stood there and when the fireball contacted, she was blasted away, painfully hitting the steps of her own throne. Caleb rushed towards her while the girls laughed maniacally. What the heck was wrong here? Did they all snap? Or was there more?

Her eyes widened when Cornelia kept laughing insanely, even when the other three seemed to regain their sanity. She saw the confused, yet delighted and angered looks on Taranee, Irma and Hay Lin. They were all staring confused at each other and at Will, who was slowly trying to get up, pushing away all of Caleb's attempts to help her. Elyon shivered slightly when Cornelia stopped her laughing and how she tilted her head slowly, looking crazily at Will.

"What's wrong, oh mighty leader?" She spat. "Where is your power now?"

Elyon cringed when a stone pin came from the ground and hit Will square in the stomach. Will gasped loudly as she got launched in the air. Another stone slap threw her against the wall, where thorny vines grabbed her arms and legs. Will didn't seem to be completely powerless and burnt the vines away, yet Cornelia countered with another stone pin, which threw Will at the ground.

Will wasn't getting up and Cornelia cackled madly. Elyon shook her head. Cornelia had truly snapped and she wondered if Will had lost her powers when the Guardians had gained theirs.

Her eyes didn't stay long on Cornelia, even when Cornelia taunted loudly with: "You don't look so well, Will! Maybe you should visit a physician!"

No, her eyes were glued to Irma, Taranee and Hay Lin. At first they were just standing there, looking completely confused and surprised at themselves and Cornelia's mad spree. But now they were making their way to the cage with Nigel and Eric, evading any rocks Cornelia attempted to throw at Will. Cornelia didn't seem to care that she could possibly hit any of the other girls. All she seemed to care about was clubbing Will to death.

Elyon signed to Cedric, Miranda and Caleb, who all nodded. She used her magic and teletransported them in front of the cage, just before Irma, Taranee or Hay Lin could reach it. Elyon could feel the magical power coming from the girls, which only added to her confusion. Their combined power was nearly Will's, so how was it possible that Cornelia was batting Will around as if it was nothing? Things weren't adding up at all.

"Not so fast, ladies." Cedric sneered, making Elyon focus on the three traitors in front of her.

Irma, Taranee and Hay Lin scowled at them and Elyon saw how they started to charge their attacks.

"What's this Ced?" Irma sneered. "Were you tired of kissing Phobos's butt? Did you run to Will instead?"

"If I'm not mistaken, it was your job to serve her." Caleb growled at them, unsheathing his sword. "And you will pay for betraying her!"

Elyon sighed annoyed. Caleb might have been smart enough to stay out of Will's fight with Cornelia, but his brains seemed to leave him once more as the boy ran at Irma, who blasted him back with a powerful jet of water. To Elyon's surprise, Caleb seemed to be capable of blocking the water blast and he even kept on walking. If Hay Lin hadn't helped Irma, Caleb would have been able to reach Irma. So Will did more than just give him some armor.

"Damn! What did Will do to him?" She heard Irma mutter shocked.

" I don't care!" Taranee hissed back. "I just want to save Nigel and get out of here!"

Elyon grinned and spread her arms, while both Cedric and Miranda transformed.

"You are going nowhere." She said. "It's not nice to try and kidnap Will's guests."

She could see the scowls on the faces of the girls and smirked slightly. They were still easily offended, though Elyon doubted that that would be the right course of action. With their increase in power, it was possible for them to be a danger for her.

"I liked you better when you were a gullible twit." Irma sneered darkly.

"And I liked Matt better when he was alive." Elyon countered before shrugging. "But hey! We can't have everything."

Irma yelled in rage and ran at her, her arms coated in a thick layer of ice. Elyon quickly went out of the way but Irma shot the ice off her arms, splintering it in many tiny fragments and shot it at her. Elyon quickly raised a barrier to stop the attack and felt how powerful Irma had become. It slightly bothered her, but she knew that if Irma did a combined attack with Taranee and Hay Lin, that even her shield would break.

But that was worry for later. She dropped her barrier and shot a bolt of her own magic at Irma, who dodged it, yet a small line of blood was traced on her cheek after the bolt shot past her. Irma countered with another jet of water, which was now accompanied by a strong gust of Hay Lin. As Elyon created another shield to protect her, Cedric lunged at Hay Lin, making her stop her attack and dodge Cedric. Miranda shot webbing at Irma, stopping her as well and capturing her immediately. But then Taranee came into action, firing at Miranda and at the webbing that kept Irma in place. The webbing burnt away as Miranda jumped out of the way.

Miranda hissed annoyed and shot another webbing at Taranee, who easily burnt it before it ever reached her. Irma blasted Miranda aside with a strong jet of water, knocking her out. Elyon sighed out of annoyance. Miranda should have dodged it.

"Stop this!" Taranee demanded, almost hysterical. "We are stronger than you, especially now. Step aside and we won't hurt you."

Elyon laughed at that. They really thought they were winning. But Elyon knew better. Once Cornelia had managed to finish off Will, she would attack them. Her fellow Guardians as well as Cedric, Miranda, Caleb and her. Besides, one right accusation could get the Guardians to fight each other. They all looked desperate and confused, but doing such a thing would be something like a last resort. So she clenched her fists and glared at Taranee.

"You dare to speak like this to a queen." She said darkly. "If you want to get past me, you will have to kill me."

Taranee's face darkened quickly and Irma screamed angered.

"That's it!" She bellowed. "I've had it with stuck-up blondes! First you will go and then Corny."

Irma blasted a new jet of water at Elyon and Elyon blocked once more. What she hadn't counted for was the fact that Irma's attack could have grown stronger because of her anger. She felt how the water jet was pushing against her shield, slowly breaking through it. When small sprites of water hit her face, Elyon started to feel scared. Irma on the other hand started to smirk and fired harder, hoping to break the shield and hurting Elyon. Cedric roared loudly and tried to smack Irma away when Hay Lin created a wind shield around Irma, making it impossible for Cedric to hit her. Caleb then jumped at Hay Lin, resisting the winds she blew at him and slashing at her. The cutting edge of his sword missed Hay Lin by inches, but Caleb then rushed forward and tackled Hay Lin in her stomach, making her fall back.

But their help was for nothing. Irma's water jet blasted through her shield and hit her square in the face. She was blasted backwards and she hit the bars of the cage painfully. She was sure she felt a rib crack.

She fell to the ground and coughed up some blood.

"Do you feel the pain, you pathetic creature?" She heard Cornelia sneer, but Elyon couldn't bring herself to look at Will and Cornelia.

Instead she looked up when Cedric roared and she saw how Irma and Hay Lin were trying to freeze him. She noticed Hay Lin wincing a couple of times and saw how Hay Lin's hand went to her stomach. So Caleb had hit her hard. She shot a bolt of magic at Hay Lin, hoping to hit her and give Cedric some space, but Hay Lin managed to dodge it in time.

Her eyes were drawn to a big fire on her left. She saw how Taranee tried to stop Caleb from advancing on her, by engulfing him in flames. However, Caleb's armor seemed to absorb the fire and he walked through it as if it wasn't even there. He raised his sword, ready to cleave Taranee into two, when an ice beam hit him, freezing him in his tracks. Elyon looked surprised at Irma and Hay Lin, who had finally managed to freeze Cedric and who were now walking towards her. Taranee had sighed in relief when Caleb was frozen but now also advanced on her and the cage behind her. It struck Elyon that she was the only one who was capable to fight and she silently cursed the sudden rise in powers of the Guardians. She didn't know how they received it but she had the nagging feeling Kandrakar had managed to help them.

The three girls advanced on her like predators, with a killer look on their faces. Irma's left eye was slightly twitching and a thin slice ran over her cheek. Hay Lin walked a bit troubled, her hand still laying on her stomach. One of Taranee's glasses were broken but other than that she seemed fine. Elyon slowly heaved herself up and faced her three opponents. If they thought she would go down so easily, than they were in for a nasty surprise.

"Elyon, you have lost." Taranee said. "Now step aside."

Elyon let her head hang, not to admit defeat, but to cover her smirking face. She stepped aside but when Taranee walked past to get to the cage, she blasted her away with full force. Taranee shrieked in pain while Irma and Hay Lin roared in anger. Elyon felt how the air around her started to twist violently and she had to create a stronger shield when drops of ice fell down on her. She felt how the winds took her up into the sky, but thanks to the shield, she was not harmed. She could see how Taranee got up, now having a bloody lip and how her glasses reflected a fire that was not there. When she saw that Taranee was lighting her hands, Elyon started to feel a little uncomfortable. Granted, she now had a stronger shield but she still had the nasty feeling that the three combined would break through it. She prepared for a nasty blow when suddenly the winds stopped and she landed hard on the ground. The hail turned to rain and then to nothing and Taranee's lightened hands started to smoke.

"ENOUGH!"

A loud yell rang through her ears and Elyon turned her head, seeing Cornelia being blasted away and ramming into Irma. Cornelia looked battered and blood ran down her temple but she was breathing and her eyes were large with fear. Elyon looked at the direction from where Cornelia had come from and saw Will standing there. Her dark aura had returned and was burning viciously around her while her dark eyes were settled on the four Guardians. She seemed to have some bruises and a cut across her cheek, but as Elyon watched, she saw a pink aura enveloping Will. She swallowed softly, knowing that the Heart was not only healing her, but increasing her powers as well. Had that been Will's aim? Using the girls to increase in strength?

Will's smirk had returned as well and with her eyes glowing slightly, she made an even scarier impression than before.

"Play time is over." Will announced and Elyon noticed that Will's voice was echoing.

Relief settled in her as she saw how Will walked at them and how Cornelia crawled backwards, shaking her head in fear. The time of the Guardians was about to run out.

**…**

Yes. Cower. Fear. That's what they were meant to feel. To feel hopeless and scared. To know that no one was going to save them. That they had ruined it for themselves. And now they were to experience the true meaning of darkness and how it will destroy them.

Will's eyes rested on Cornelia, who was taking cover behind Irma. No, she was using Irma as a meat shield. How cute she was. First thinking that she alone could kill her and now quivering like a little child. But Cornelia Hale was nothing more than a little child with a huge ego and she just broke that.

Irma, Taranee and Hay Lin went to stand in front of Cornelia, seemingly forgetting that it was the blonde's fault that their lives were about to end.

Will did smirk when she saw how the three of them readied themselves to attack her. Did they not realize that she had just stopped their attack on Elyon? Or had they become arrogant by their victory over Cedric, Miranda, Caleb and Elyon? The glimpse of defiance in their eyes made Will believe it was the latter. How pitiful. Were they really comparing her with her servants?

"Will, you won't stand a chance." Taranee exclaimed boldly. "Now with our power boost, even you are nothing."

Will raised her eyebrow.

"That's a bit haughty coming from you." She said calmly, but her voice was dark and the echo menacing.

"Face it lighthouse." Irma sneered. "It's three on one, four on one if we knock Corny out of her daze. You can't possibly wi…"

"St-Stay away from her!" Cornelia screamed scared and Will smirked when she saw the terrified sapphires of Cornelia. "She..She's not human!"

Irma brushed Cornelia off and gathered water in her hands. A cocky smirk rested on her lips and she nodded at Taranee and Hay Lin, who both seemed to ignore Cornelia's heartfelt warning.

"Corny, I don't know what you did, but you obviously didn't use your boosted version." Irma glowered. "Let us show you how it's done."

Will raised an eyebrow when she saw how the aura's around the girls increased and she smirked when the three of them shot their strongest attack. She spread her hands and made electricity crackle all around her, creating a barrier and making herself look slightly more insane. She felt how the energy flowed through her eyes and she was sure her whole body was sparking. The attack of the three Guardians bounced off harmlessly. Even before the attack was finished she started her counterattack.

"Quintessence."

Lightning gathered violently around her arms and it used the attack of the three Guardians to conduct itself quicker to them, absorbing even more energy as it went. The Guardians barely managed to stop their attack and were blown away by the impact, creating a small explosion.

Will was sure to pull the attack at the last moment, as an interesting idea came to mind.

She walked slowly to the cage, passing Elyon without even looking at her. She shot three tiny bolts at Caleb, Cedric and Miranda. While Caleb and Cedric defrosted, Miranda woke up with a soft yelp, but Will's eyes were fixated on the four Guardians, who were now recovering from the hit and who were all looking terrified at her. She chuckled darkly.

"What's wrong?" She asked, her voice being unnaturally high pitched, girly and innocent. "Weren't you vowing that you would kill me? That I would wish I had bled to death the day you all left me behind? Or were those just empty threats?"

The four of them were shivering, while Cedric snickered darkly. A quick glance from her told him she wasn't finished with him either and he quickly shut up. Her eyes then went back to the Guardians and to the cage. The smirk on her face grew larger.

"You know what?" She said darkly. "I'll show mercy."

Their eyes widened even more and behind her, Will could hear Elyon gasp in surprise.

"M-Mercy?" Taranee stammered scared.

Will grinned devilishly at her and bowed her head.

"Yes, mercy. A word the four of you don't seem to know." She said, sneering at them as well. "Seeing that you cannot defeat me and that it's thanks to you that I am the proud holder of two Hearts as well as the true ruler of Meridian, I feel like I owe you something."

There was an unnatural silence and Will could practically taste the hope of her enemies. How exquisite, she couldn't wait to see that hope fall.

"I shall give you a choice." She said, savouring every bit of hope and anxiety the Guardians were spreading. "There is a portal which will bring you safely back to Earth at the rim of the forest. I shall give you thirty minutes head start to run or fly towards the portal, but you can also spend those minutes to fight off Elyon, Cedric, Caleb and Miranda to save Eric and Nigel, which you've just showed you are capable off. But beware. There is only one portal and the forest is vast."

She stopped for a second, looking at their faces. She could already see their decision and she inwardly smiled. They were pathetic, all four of them.

"Your choice." She said before teletransporting to her throne and she sat down.

At first the Guardians looked lost at each other and at the cage. Eric and Nigel pleaded them to save them, but Elyon, Caleb, Cedric and Miranda were already standing in front of them. The Guardians took one look at them, before their eyes all settled on Will. Will placed her finger tops together and looked over them at the Guardians. For a minute, no one moved. It even seemed as if the Guardians were holding their breath and the only sound were the desperate pleas of Nigel and Eric. Then, without a word being said, they all turned to the exit. Hay Lin even turned invisible and they all started to run. Running for their lives.

Eric and Nigel cried in pain and hurt at their lovers, but neither of them reacted and Will felt how each of them went another way into the forest. Irma went west, Taranee south, Hay Lin north and Cornelia east.

A smirk crossed her lips as the cries of despair from the two boys started to fade away. Will saw how hurt the two boys were looking in their cage, both of them had fallen to their knees and they looked at the exit as if they couldn't believe what just had happened. They were betrayed by their own lovers. How sad.

"Are you really going to let them escape?"

It was a grim question from Caleb and Will slowly descended her throne, a wicked smile on her face.

"Do you honestly believe I would give them such a chance?" She asked him and she could see him smirk as well.

"You liar!" Eric yelled at her, but Will merely raised an eyebrow.

"Liar? I merely exposed them for what they are. Don't you agree with me that they only deserve to die after they left you here to save themselves?" She asked them calmly.

Nigel scowled at her.

"I would have done the same." He said.

Will clacked with her tongue.

"How irritatingly heroic." She said slightly annoyed. "Besides, they would never manage to reach the rim of the forest, seeing that that's a day walking from here."

"But Will, are you truly going to give them half an hour to run?" Miranda asked carefully.

Will's eyes twinkled dangerously.

"Thirty minutes, thirty seconds." She said carelessly. "I was never that good at math."

Her followers grinned darkly while Nigel and Eric screamed in fear for their lovers. How cute, they still cared, even after being tossed aside. She pointed her hand to them and lightning hit them right in the heads. They screamed but then fell unconscious to the ground.

"Are they dead?" Caleb asked indifferently.

"No." Will replied. "I see potential in them. But first they need to break and how to break a guy better than to see how his girlfriend gets murdered through the eyes of the killer?"

Cedric hissed darkly.

"That's torture." He praised.

Will bowed her head a bit.

"Well, that being said and done, let's start a nice hunt. You four make sure you heal and rest up. We're going for Kandrakar in about two days."

With that she turned away, knowing that her companions were all looking dumbfounded at her. She called on her magic and she quickly morphed into her wolf-form. The scents of the girls were still fresh and she felt her mouth water. Her first stop would be her closest friend.

**…**

Her feet were already dragging and her side was burning. The small gashes on her body weren't good either. And to make things worse, the trees themselves seemed to be against her. She could hear them blame her for the evil that ruled Meridian. That it was solely the Earth Guardian's fault. Yet she shook those angry whispers from her mind as the horrible event of seconds ago started to replay itself. Will turning her parents into trees and seeing them burn, while she was the only one who could hear their screams of agony and she felt the pain they went through. After that she had hoped, even believed that she could kill Will. Her anger had been feeding her and with the boost she had received, she really thought she could take Will down. It was stupid of her and arrogant, but not that she thought about it now.

No, all she thought about was to run. To create a bigger distance between her and the evil that lurked in the castle. The fear Will had installed in her was making its way to her heart and head. Her brains were going numb as her heart pumped harder at the thought of Will's cackle or even the glance of her dark eyes. How could she have survived? How could she be this strong?

Shivers ran over her spine when she thought of how easily Will brushed her off while she had been thrown through the room like a rag doll. Will had been supposed to be cripple, to spit blood and beg for mercy. Instead she only grinned. Her smirk was mocking and her eyes showed not only hatred that was growing by the minute, but also disappointment and defiance. She only lifted a finger when Elyon was in danger. Or did she just lift a finger because she didn't want to free Eric and Nigel?

Cornelia tried to ponder over those things but Will's face returned to her mind's eye. The bruises she had inflicted were gone the moment that pink aura enveloped Will and Cornelia couldn't stop herself to think of Will's transformation. She'd always thought Shagon looked nightmarish, but Will outmatched him.

Her breathing became more difficult and Cornelia had to stop. She had to take a breath. How long had she been running? Why was it looking as if the forest was endless? She couldn't ask the trees. She didn't dare to. Everything around her was hostile. Was Will truly mastering all five the elements? More scaring thoughts were filling her mind when suddenly the sound of snapping trees brought her back to senses. Her breath halted and she turned around, seeing Will's horrifying appearance nearing from the trees.

"You can't run."

It was just a whisper, but it hit Cornelia with a force. The sudden rush of adrenaline made her run, turn away from Will and run as fast as she could. When her legs started to refuse service, she remembered her wings, which immediately started to flap desperately. She just wanted to go. To run away from this nightmare. The body of her sister got caught in her head and Cornelia's breathing became shallow, yet she pushed on. She didn't want to die.

A shriek escaped her lips when Will suddenly appeared before her, flying a little higher than she was. She had her arms crossed and that devilish smirk had turned into scowl.

"You can't hide."

Cornelia shrieked again and dove downwards. She started zigzagging between the trees, tears rolling down. How was it possible for Will to be everywhere at the same time?

A sudden pain in her chest made her wings stop and Cornelia landed harshly on the ground, scraping her right arm. It felt as if something was broken. As if her own element felt a sister disappear. She cried out of pain but then heard Will snicker. Her eyes opened and she saw Will walking towards her. Cornelia got up and took a sharp turn to right, ignoring the pain in her chest as the fear in her mind was pushing her body to limits she'd never reached before. She had to outrun Will. She had to survive. She was so scared, she just wished that she'd never fallen in love with Phobos, or that she'd never betrayed Will.

**…**

What was wrong with her? Nigel had been there. Will had practically given her a chance to run with him and yet Taranee had decided to run. To run and save her own miserable life. She could have easily taken on Elyon, but why did she run? Why was she so scared?

'Because Will could probably blow you away without a second thought, you stupid.' She thought miserably.

Taranee had taken the liberty to fly the moment her feet had taken a step out of the dark castle. She had seen the sea of red roses and she couldn't help to think how every single one of those flowers caught Will's personality. Beautiful, but deadly. Will had always shown innocence and mercy, but now she was dark and heartless. Now that Taranee was thinking about it, she had to laugh. An insane laugh, perhaps, because she could feel that she would die. Because she knew Will wouldn't be so stupid as to leave loose ends. Because she knew that Will wouldn't grant mercy. No, this was a sick game of her.

The realization hit her when she noticed that she could only hear her own wings. She needed to calm down. This was Will's game and Taranee wasn't planning on playing it. She had already played it when Will killed her parents. The moment she thought of it she saw how her parents burned, how their screams resounded in her mind and she grabbed her head, hoping it would cancel the images. Hell fire. A devil's tool.

She shook her head, trying to subdue her own cries. She should stop trying to attract any attention. She had to find the other girls. Together they were strong and Will knew that. Taranee had the nagging feeling it was Will's interference that made them go separate ways. Now it was her job to find the other girls. They could stop Will if they would work together.

Taranee got up on her feet, holding her head as a pounding headache took place for the images of her parents. The headache was strong and it even felt burning but she bit her tongue. She had to find the girls.

A twig snapped behind her and Taranee turned around, biting her tongue so not to yelp out of fear. She saw a wolf approaching and for a second relief washed over her. She had thought that Will had already found her. That her half hour was already over. But then she realized something.

"A wolf…" She muttered softly to herself, seeing that thinking was only increasing her headache. "Wolves hunt in packs, which means that this one's pack should be near."

With that she made a dome of fire around her, hoping to scare any other wolves away. Her eyes then settled on the only visible one, which was now sitting near the tree from which it had appeared. The wolf's eyes were a terrifying dark mahogany brown, but Taranee caught another feature of the wolf that made her gasp in realization.

"Very good Taranee. Too bad I abandoned the idea of a pack long ago."

Taranee let out a yelp when she recognized the voice. The red of the ears had already betrayed who she was facing, but the echoing voice coming from the wolfish mouth only made it worse. She had hoped she was just facing a normal wolf, but instead she found…

"Will." She said, her voice filled with awe at the transformation she was witnessing.

Will had transformed from her wolf form to her 'real' form. Taranee had to admit that this outfit was truly Will. No restrictions. She truly was her own boss. And she was planning to end Taranee's life.

"S-Stay back!" Taranee warned, raising her hands and lighting them on fire, despite knowing that Will could easily stop her attack.

Will shook her head, slowly walking at her and completely ignoring the roaring fire dome that surrounded Taranee. Taranee took steps backwards, not wanting to be near to Will and her dark aura.

"My luck seems to follow me wherever I go, doesn't it Taranee?"

Will's whisper was harsh and Taranee stepped back. With every step Will took towards her, Taranee got a vision. A vision of her burning parents, of her drowning brother or of the happier memories she had of her and Will together. All of these visions were burning her brain and Taranee abandoned her defense to clutch her head.

"Can you see them?"

Taranee looked up in the merciless eyes of Will, who looked down with glee. Taranee reacted out of fear and stepped back before she fell backwards on the ground. Will took slow steps to her and more visions were filling her head. She could hear Peter's struggle under water, as well as the thoughts that had gone through his head. The thoughts that had gone through Will's head when they had a fun time together. The blame she was receiving now. All those images started to swirl her mind and she cried in pain. These images were swirling so fast that it felt as if they were burning her.

Will took another step forward, but Taranee crawled up as she blasted a minor fireball at Will. Will merely batted it aside but Taranee had already started running. Her head was pounding, as if it was trying to pull itself inside out. She never thought it was possible to feel such a pain and yet here it was, inflicted by Will. As the images of her parents and brother lingered longer, a pain in her chest started to throb as well. She blamed herself for failing to protect her parents. To avenge them. To save Will. Tears fell endlessly down her cheeks, but they started to evaporate, only seconds after they'd claimed their freedom from her eyes. Taranee didn't notice them. She couldn't notice anything. Any sound she heard was magnified and echoed through her head, triggering not only more memories, but also more pain. Only when she felt her throat getting dry and hoarse did she realize that she'd been screaming. Screaming out of pain and sadness.

"You're burning up inside."

Will's voice sounded so clear, so releasing. When her voice infiltrated Taranee's brain, a sudden tranquility settled in her, which was oddly accompanied with a strong wave of fear. She knew Will could kill her, especially now that she was defenseless, but a part of her nearly wanted to beg Will to continue talking. At least then her head would find some peace.

"Make…. Make… Make it stop." She choked out. "Pl-Please."

Even Will's merciless snicker made the images settle in her head. The sheer fear for Will was numbing the pain in her head, but the moment even Will's echo disappeared the images returned. The pain returned in tenfold and a new scream of pain, which surely ripped her throat, was forced into the air.

The images were so quick, so painful and so incomprehensible that Taranee started to give up. She finally saw that there was no escape. The images had popped up the moment she'd tried to escape and they had intensified when Will appeared. This was Will's punishment.

"Look at that, your head is on fire." Were the last words Taranee could hear.

**…**

Will was looking at a crouching Taranee. Plumes of smoke came from her ears and as Will watched, she could see how the rest of Taranee's skull caught fire. Only for a short moment did her scowling smirk disappear for a genuine mark of sorrow, before it was casted away.

Without fear of the burning dead body, Will reached forward and grabbed the burning remains of Taranee's head. She was sure that Taranee's corpse would burn away in a couple minutes. And she had to act quick before the power would leave the body.

Taranee's body started to glow a pale orange and Will could feel how the element was struggling to rejoin its master. But she was stronger and the glow of the element slowly made its way to her own body. Will could feel how an connection to fire was made and she even felt that the other elements shuddered. They didn't want to rejoin her as much as her old friends didn't want to die. What a cruel world, right?

"Goodbye…T." She said in a stroke of sorrow, before turning around and leaving the body.

There were more people to kill and with that thought, Will transformed into her battle wolf-form and teletransported away.

**…**

She was light-headed. Her lunges were demanding for air and Cornelia couldn't do anything but sit against a bark and breath slowly and deep. She had to move on. She was sure that if she'd stayed here, Will would find her and then she would be dead. And she was sure she was close to the rim of the forest. She had to be. The trees were already widening which meant that the forest was stopping. The trees also felt less hostile and Cornelia had noticed that a strange, yet delicious scent was spreading throughout the forest. A flowery scent in fact.

When she finally caught her breath, Cornelia got up and stretched her wings. Flying was quicker and she had to get away, before she ended like her parents. The moment she thought of them, the memory of their death flashed past. Even if it seemed remorseful, Cornelia knew it wasn't. She was the only one who could feel their pain and hear their screams and it would be something she would remember forever. Just like…

Childish laughter was breaking through the forest and Cornelia's heart stopped temporarily. Children were playing in the forest and for the first time since long, Cornelia felt that she had to save them. Perhaps she hoped that she could save someone from Will and calm a bit of her conscious, even if she already felt that she didn't deserve it.

She flew to the sounds of laughing children, when suddenly she halted. Cornelia had arrived at a clearing with over a million colorful flowers, but the thing that made her lose her breath were the two girls playing in the clearing. Two girls with blonde hair were playing joyfully in the clearing. The older blonde was weaving flowers into the hair of the younger blonde. But Cornelia could recognize them. They were….

"Lillian?" She asked, her voice filled with disbelieve.

A younger version of her and Lillian were playing in the field and Cornelia slowly walked towards them, not believing her eyes, when suddenly her heart stopped. Will had appeared right behind them and smirked evilly at Cornelia.

"No! Don't! Lillian, get away from there!" Cornelia cried, but Lillian, nor her younger version seemed to hear her.

Will raised her hand and Cornelia tried to stop Will, but it was too late. Lillian's blooded body lay on the ground, her eyes wide open and the image of the younger Cornelia vanished in thin air. And all Cornelia could do was scream. She made the ground quake and cave in beneath Will's feet, but Will, just like the body of Lillian, vanished in thin air. A wind swept over the field and Cornelia realized that all had been an illusion. She was alone, on a field of flowers, with only the sound of her sobs to accompany her.

She had to leave. She was going crazy. Images of Lillian, now blood stained and cruel, flashed before her mind's eye and Cornelia wondered if Will was trying to drive her insane and make her kill herself. Cause if that was Will's aim, then she was succeeding.

Cornelia shook all suicidal thoughts off of her and ran away. Away from the field and away from another painful memory of something that had never happened in the first place.

**…**

Stupid.

Irma kept repeating the same word over and over again, berating herself. How could she have been this blind? Had she turned into a Nerissa? She could have gone against Cornelia. She could have easily gained Taranee's and Hay Lin's support. If she'd gone against Cornelia like she normally would, then her parents would have still been alive. Heck! She wouldn't have been running for her life right now if she just rebelled.

Rebelled. For some reason that word sounded bitter in her mind. Wasn't she the one who wanted to join the rebels to begin with? And wasn't she the rebel of their group? Since when did she turn into a slave of power?

And now, once more, was she following orders. Irma finally came to an understanding. She wasn't meant to rebel, but to listen. To obey like a slave. She smirked sadly. Now she was following Will's order to run away. To save her own life. Irma knew that if she would return, she would get killed. And seeing how Will had changed, Irma wouldn't be surprised if Will would kill her in a horrid fashion. Perhaps making her blood boil and freeze at the same time. A shiver escaped when she thought of it, but it also triggered something else.

She didn't want to die, obeying someone's orders. If she had to die, than she would do it like her father would have done. Fighting.

Her wings stopped their helpless struggle to stay in the air and Irma landed softly. She didn't know how far this forest would go, but she did know that it was longer than a mere half an hour walk. Instead she turned around, looking in the direction of the gloomy castle and the home of a devil. Irma tried to take a step back to the castle, but her feet refused service. Her body didn't want her to give up life, but Irma refused to run anymore. She'd never been the sporty type and this running was killing her.

Seeing that she couldn't go back and refused to move onward, Irma leaned on a tree. She could just wait for Will to find her here, just like a sitting duck, but that also caused Irma to scoff. Wasn't there a way for her to disobey Will without being a coward?

Seeing that she refused to give into her primal instincts to run and her body refused to return to the castle, Irma sat down on the ground with her back against one of the trees. Even though her heart was racing, she could still feel how the whistles of the birds were calming her. The sun was shining brightly above the foliage and yet Irma couldn't help but hate it. How could everything be so beautiful while all these horrid things were happening?

It was as if nature was reading her thoughts, because the rays of the sun started to dim and she could hear how the birds fell silent. She even noticed several animals running away.

Before she could even wonder what was wrong she heard a growl came from a nearby bush and Irma jumped back, her hands enveloped in ice. She didn't care what it was, but she wasn't planning on getting jumped on by an animal. But the moment Irma caught a glance of the thing that growled, she knew it wasn't just an animal. The wolf in question was a lot bigger than an average wolf and it had red streaks over its body. Next to the fact that the eyes were still a dark mahogany brown told Irma enough.

"Transform back Will." She growled, acting braver than she felt. Truthfully, she wanted to cry and beg for her life, but she refused to bow for that feeling.

The wolf chuckled and Irma had to hold her breath when the wolf transformed to Will. The transformation was brilliant to behold as well as frightening. When Will stood before her, Irma clenched her fists, yet she couldn't bring up the courage to look into Will's eyes.

"You truly inherited your father's courage as well as his foolishness." Will sneered at her and Irma shivered involuntarily at the echo.

Irma found the use of her voice, but winced at the sound of it as she spoke.

"Wh-Why a-are y-you doing th-this?"

Will snickered and Irma could see how her breath became visible. The ice around her arms seemed to tighten around her hands and still she couldn't look at Will. But Will made an end to that as Irma felt how Will gently grabbed her chin and pulled it up. Irma looked right into two cold chocolate pools and she could see her own desperate eyes being reflected by them.

"I'm trying to take my revenge, isn't it obvious?" Will sneered and Irma regretted saying almost exactly the same thing a year ago.

Will's fingers pierced into her skin and tears started to fall down her cheeks. It was as if her mind was shutting off and that her primal instincts were taking over. She raised her hand and punched Will with everything she had. It was not surprising that her attack never hit. Instead her hand collided with an energy barrier and besides the ice that was cracking, Irma could feel how some bones in her hand broke as well.

"Almost." Will hissed. "But still not good enough."

Every feeling of rebellion left Irma as quickly as it had come. She wanted to live. She would do anything to do just that and she spoke again.

"I…I'm sorry."

She could see how Will's eyes suddenly lighted up, but her smirk fell. Did she manage to surprise Will?

"What?" Will hissed, her voice still dangerous.

"I…I should have never betrayed you." Irma said, her voice being high pitched and uneven.

Will looked at her and for a second Irma thought she would be believed, but then Will scowl and Irma felt the searing pain of Will's hand to her cheek. The force behind the blow was sudden and strong and it knocked her to the ground.

"A little late to say that, don't you think?" Will growled at her.

Irma shook her head and gathered the courage to look up into Will's eyes. Will's scowl was worse than her smirk and Irma shivered as she got back up.

"I…I want to join you." She said, her voice quivering and her mind wondering what she was trying to accomplish. "I…I want to kill Cornelia. I…I'll d..do it f..for you, if y..you wish."

Will's eyes lit up yet Irma berated herself in her mind. What was she doing? She was betraying her friends once more. What kind of human being would do such a despicable act so many times? Though her instincts to survive were much stronger and Irma even dared to look with defiance at Will, who had remained silent for the moment.

"Why Irma?"

Will's voice was dangerously soft, which made the echo even creepier. Irma swallowed the bile that had been gathering and kept looking at Will.

"…I…"

"What could you possibly have that would benefit me?"

Will's insane smirk made Irma step away, at least she tried to before Will's grip on her chin became even fiercer and made her stay put. Irma could see that Will wasn't interested in any friendship or any compassionate feelings. She was truly only looking for things that could benefit her. That would make her stronger.

"You are weak. Your family is dead. You have nothing I can use." Will hissed darkly and Irma felt even weaker.

Her mind went completely blank once again and her instincts took over. Irma created another water ball, hoping to get a surprise attack on Will. She was close to firing it when Will suddenly started to shine orange. The same orange as Taranee.

Irma's eyes widened with even more surprise and she finally realized what the pain was from before. Taranee was already lost and Will had taken her power.

Her water ball was evaporating in her hands and she shook like a leaf. Will laughed darkly and more tears fell down Irma's face, even though they were evaporated by Will's body heat. Will's fingers were burning in her cheeks and Irma was sure holes were beginning to form in her cheeks.

"You…You _are_ a m-monster." Irma stammered.

Will laughed even louder and the echo that accompanied it made Irma nearly lose her consciousness. She never thought it was possible to be truly scared out of your mind.

"_I_ am a monster, Irma?" Will whispered sweetly. "Weren't you the one who not just betrayed your friends to save your life? Weren't you the one who tried to betray me once more? _You_ have no right to talk about monstrosities."

While Will talked, Irma could feel how the force of her fingers increased, yet Irma couldn't scream. Her voice seemed lost and her heart was hurt. Not just by everything that had happened, but also by Will's words. Will was right. _She_ was a monster. She kept betraying people. She wasn't trustworthy. She was horrible.

Then it happened. She could feel Will's fingers against her tongue and Irma nearly hurled as she envisioned how she and Will were standing, with Will's fingers protruding her cheeks. The burning sensation accompanied with the many stings of pain increased her pain even more and Will snickered again. Was it her or were all villains lunatics?

"Now let's play a drinking game."

Irma's eyes widened in shock when she saw how Will stopped glowing orange and when she felt how slowly a drip of ice cold water fell into her throat. She tried to swallow it, but with Will not only blocked her tongue and thus her swallowing reflex, but also forcing the drip into her airshaft, she knew that it was over.

She could feel how the ice cold drip fell into her right lung. A stab of pain came from her lung and she winced, causing more pain in her face as well. Tears were now rolling uncontrollably down her cheeks and she couldn't even take the time to be surprised that she was still capable of crying. Because when she looked once more at Will's face, she saw a merciless demon staring down at her. After that she felt how more water started to fill her lungs.

**…**

Will admitted that her fingers going through Irma's cheeks wasn't something she had thought off. After reclaiming her connection to the Water Auramere, Will slowly unplugged her fingers from Irma's cheeks. Bits of water leaked from the holes but with a wave of her hand the holes closed. Now Irma looked fine, except for the dull expression in her eyes and the terrified expression with which she left this world.

Will scoffed softly as she looked at the Water Guardian. Irma must have tried to create an art out of betraying people. Not only did she betray her friends Nigel and Eric by abandoning them, but she also wished to betray the other Guardians just to save her measly life and after that sad attempt she tried to betray Will once more. So, if Will counted the time that Irma betrayed her for the first time, that would be four times. And then people told her she was evil.

"You were really gifted in betraying, weren't you?" Will said, fully knowing that Irma was long gone. "What would Hay Lin say if she knew?"

Her eyes flickered when the idea came to her mind. Hay Lin would love to show herself for Irma, wouldn't she?

Will shook her head when Irma's mouth fell open, now that there was nothing to stop the gravity from pulling it down. Again a stream of water was leaking out and Will playfully closed the mouth.

"Ah. Ah. Ah, Irma" She said playfully. "You don't want to spoil any surprises, do you?"

**…**

Elyon winced when Eric started to scream. She had seen Nigel screaming, pleading to an invisible Will and even puking. She assumed that Will had killed Taranee at that point, but it didn't mean that she could watch when Nigel hurled.

Now she was looking with growing curiosity and compassion at Eric. Nigel hadn't been really specific when it came to screaming. He mostly begged and repeated the word 'No' a lot. Perhaps Eric would be more clear about how Hay Lin would die.

Elyon shivered as she thought about the ways Will could kill the Guardians. She had heard Will talk about it with her maid, someone who seemed to truly like Will. The different ways Will had summed up were all cruel in their own way and it made Elyon almost feel compassion and sorrow for her former friends. Key word: almost.

A blanket fell over her shoulders and Elyon looked surprised up to see Cedric standing over her. She shuddered again, but this time it was because she enjoyed his company. She saw how Cedric's eyes wandered from the cage back to her and Elyon managed to suppress a blush.

"You seem cold." He said.

Elyon shook her head and nodded at the two unconscious boys in the cage. Nigel had managed to pull himself into a fetus position and was silently crying while sometimes whispering things. Eric was still screaming and begging, like Nigel had been doing minutes earlier.

"No, I thought of the things that those two might see." She said calmly.

She could hear Cedric's snicker and grinned herself. It was pretty fun to see the two boys scream into the empty air.

"Though it's nice to see people being tortured, I don't understand why she would want them." Cedric hissed. "At least Caleb held some fighting power."

Elyon shrugged. She had given up to figure out what Will's plans were a long time ago. Now she simply followed. She had figured out that that was the most painless and prosperous route to go.

"I don't know. Will was never easy to understand."

Together they watched how Eric kept screaming and crying and again Elyon couldn't help herself but to imagine what Will might be doing to the girls. She felt Cedric's hand on her shoulder and she once again pulled her gaze off the two boys.

"Let these two be, Elyon." Cedric said. "We have to rest."

Elyon nodded meekly and let herself be guided out of the room by Cedric.

"NO! PLEASE! NO! HAY LIN!"

Elyon allowed herself to look back one more time and she saw how Eric had pulled himself into the same position as Nigel. So Hay Lin had died as well. Elyon shook her head slowly and turned away. Will should return shortly.

**…**

Tears kept rolling down her cheeks, but Hay Lin didn't stop. She hated herself. She hated Cornelia and she hated Will. She just left Eric to die, just because she wanted to save her own life. Because she didn't rebel against Cornelia. Because she was too weak to fight Will. She truly was the weakest member of their team and more tears fell down her cheeks.

She watched how animals ran away from her, even though they couldn't see her. She was as invisible as the air itself but it didn't make her feel anything better. She just wished she could disappear or that she would wake up from this terrible nightmare. She had lost her parents, her grandmother and now her boyfriend, all because of her failure. Her failure as a Guardian. She had wanted to make her grandmother proud, but instead she went complete Nerissa with the first promise of power.

Never in her whole life had Hay Lin felt such a guilt than now. Guilty because she betrayed her grandmother in a sense. That she betrayed a sacred bond called friendship. She didn't deserve to be clad in the Guardian outfit, but she also refused to transform back. In this form she was a lot quicker and she needed the speed. She couldn't let Will catch her. If Will caught her, it was game over. And if there was something Hay Lin truly wanted then that would be to live. To live and see the sun rise once more.

"Hay Lin?"

Hay Lin stopped abruptly. Her ears must have been deceiving her. That couldn't be Irma's voice. The air had to be playing tricks with her. But would it do that? Would the air betray her for Will? No, it couldn't be. Not even Will could be so cruel as to recreate Irma's voice with the air, right? It was impossible for her to have such a might. It had to be.

"Hay Lin? Are you still here?"

It had to be Irma! Irma must have asked Taranee where she could be found. Or perhaps Hay Lin had made a strange turn somewhere else and she had run to Irma as result. Irma just guessed it was her because of the gale of wind she left behind as she ran.

Tears ran down her cheeks as she turned visible and sprinted back.

"Irma?" She yelled too excited. "Irma, where are you?"

Some bushes started to rustle and Hay Lin looked hopeful at them. From the shadows she could see Irma's silhouette and more tears started to flow.

"Irma! I'm so glad I see you! I…"

The sudden lack of air forced her to stop speaking. Her eyes widened in shock and her hands flew to her mouth. She was looking at Irma, she was certain of it, but the air around her was so thick with evil that Hay Lin started to shiver.

"I-Irma?" Her quivering voice questioned.

Irma's body fell forward and Hay Lin could see a sliver of water escape her mouth. The snicker that followed made her look up. Right where Irma had been standing, stood now someone else. Someone she had wished to never see again.

"Killing your friends? Costs a year. The look on your face after seeing Irma's dead body? Priceless. For everything else, there's revenge." Will's dark echoing voice said.

Hay Lin gasped for air, which only seemed to be a lot more difficult than before. The air was even thicker with darkness and she could see how her breath became visible in the unnatural cold. She took a step back when she saw Will glowing slightly blue. The same blue Irma could shine.

All around her things started to freeze. The leaves of the trees got a coating of thin ice and the ground cracked from the sudden frost.

"Y-You k-killed Irma!" She said, her voice reaching higher octaves than before.

The tears on her face were freezing, clinging to her cheeks. Will took a small step forward, but that was enough for Hay Lin to regain control over her body. She turned and started running, turning herself invisible in the process.

A memory flashed by, reminding her that Will had always been a poor flyer. Hay Lin found it difficult to believe that Will could fly now that she had three wings instead of two.

Her wings started to flap quickly and within no time she'd reached the sky. The air gave her a sense of safety. It didn't matter that Will ruled over the Metaworld. She ruled the air. The air was her domain and not even Will could beat her here. Even though her heart had stopped racing and the sense of control was returning, Hay Lin did not stop. The air might be her domain but she was afraid of what Will could be capable of and she didn't want to stick around to find out.

With speeds she'd never been able to acquire before, Hay Lin flew away, hopefully towards the rim of the forest. To safety.

After a couple of minutes, Hay Lin started to believe that Will had given up. That she would let Hay Lin live. But that dream got destroyed quickly when a sudden black spear shot past her, flying even faster than Hay Lin. She had to stop abruptly because Will had appeared in front of her, her wings out stretched and flying leisurely. Hay Lin nearly shrieked until she realized that she was still invisible. Will couldn't see her and as long as she remained silent, she wouldn't be heard either.

She hovered silently in front of Will, wondering if she should descend or attack now that she had the element of surprise, when suddenly Will's dark purple flame started to burn with more intensity. Hay Lin shivered as the dark pools of chocolate looked right at her and Hay Lin could swear that she saw a small blue and orange light swirl in those eyes.

"I see you." Will said in a sing-song voice, her echo neatly creating a canon with her teasing melody. "Or better said, feel you."

Hay Lin's invisibility faltered, just by the sheer amount of surprise she felt. She would have never thought that Will could sense her. Will started to smirk maliciously, her hands sparking with lightning. Hay Lin watched how that lightning effortlessly changed into fire, yet she refused to watch how Will was showing her different ways to die. Instead she turned around and tried to fly away as quickly as possible, but before she had even moved an inch she felt a searing sensation on her back and a painful cry was forced out of her throat.

"Argh!"

She could feel how her wings were burning to crisps and even the movement of moving them was hurting her. Now, without her wings and the pain asking too much of her attention, Hay Lin fell to the ground with increasing speed. Only when she nearly hit the branches of a tree she used her magic. Not to dodge the branches, but to cushion her fall on the ground. The branches already slowed her down, but if it weren't for her magic, she would still have died on impact.

Laying on the ground, tears continued to roll down. Not out of regret, but out of sheer fear and a bit of pain. Her fear for death and Will was far greater than the pain she felt, even though it felt as if she would break apart every time she moved a muscle on her back.

"The speedy bird finally found a place to land, did she?"

Hay Lin didn't had the power to look up but she could see how Will's shadow was looming over her, like a bird of prey.

"Get up Hay Lin." Will sneered. "I enjoyed this hunt way too much to let it end now!"

As Will spoke, Hay Lin could feel how the air itself was forcing her up and she let another howl of pain. Will cackled above the scream and Hay Lin shivered on her legs, the pain in her back was nearly forcing her to fall back to the ground, yet the air seemed so solid that it would stop her from falling entirely.

'No.' She thought confused. 'I am supposed to rule the air..Not Will.'

She looked upwards, trying to ignore the pain that made her tremble even more and she looked right at Will. Despite the fear she was feeling, Hay Lin couldn't help herself but to admire Will's perfect control over her three wings.

"I… I give up!" Hay Lin struggled. "I don't want to go any longer! I have nothing left! I am nothing! Just kill me, please! I beg of you!"

" 'Just kill me please! I beg of you!' " Will mimicked with a childish high pitched voice. "I almost don't want to give you that mercy. You, nor any of the other girls deserve mercy. You are all foul, low little dogs. Thrash."

Hay Lin cried even more as she heard those words, because she knew they were true. She was thrash and she didn't deserve to live.

Will landed graciously in front of her and scoffed at her.

"Remember Hay Lin? When I asked you guys for mercy? Remember what you did to me?"

Hay Lin shook her head, not because she couldn't remember, but because she didn't want to remember.

"You left me. Left me to die." Will whispered merciless. "But I won't give you a chance to survive. Never intended to. I only set you free for my own fun, but when a toy loses its life, you just throw it away, don't you agree?"

Hay Lin cried even more, not even comprehending Will's words. The only thing she did know, was the fact that she would die. Right here. Right now. And she knew she didn't deserve such mercy.

She felt how oxygen started to fill her lungs and she could do nothing to stop it. She didn't even want to. She felt powerless against Will and she accepted this mercy only Will could give her. She was worthless after all.

**…**

Will scoffed as she watched how Hay Lin's chest exploded. Hay Lin actually managed to spoil her fun a bit. The girl really knew how to set a mood, didn't she?

Yet Hay Lin couldn't fall down. Will could clearly look into Hay Lin's body, but because of her power over the air around Hay Lin, Hay Lin couldn't fall down.

Will sighed as she forced the powers of air back to the Heart, to her. If it wasn't for the pitiful and utterly useless cries of Eric back in her castle, she even would have regretted it to kill Hay Lin.

While the powers of air started to course through her, Will lifted the magic around Hay Lin and made her body drop to the ground. Her eyes were set east and a smirk split her face. The last living Guardian would finally meet her judgment. The worst and most despicable of them all would finally be punished and Will couldn't help but enjoy that very fact. She wondered if Cornelia already tried to kill herself, after seeing so many images of her. She hoped not, because where would the fun be if she couldn't torture the last one of her '_friends'_?

**…**

Her legs. They couldn't support her weight any longer. Her wings were burning up and her chest was aching. Cornelia just knew that the other girls were dead. She just knew Will was after her now. But how could she go against her? Will had already proven that she could easily wipe out Cornelia and now that Cornelia was weakened by her efforts to reach a portal of which she now truly started to doubt existed.

Her wings fluttered almost useless in the air, but they still managed to support her weight. Her toes were touching the ground and tears were rolling uncontrollably down her cheeks. If there ever was a time that she would regret being spoiled, it would be now. She regretted all of her selfish actions and the longer she remained alone, while receiving the blame of the nature around her, the more Cornelia wanted to die.

She was on the verge of giving up all hope when she heard it. The familiar humming of a portal. It was as if her legs received new energy as well as her wings and she nearly sprinted to the humming sound, tears of joy falling down her cheeks. There, she could see it through the trees. The softly glowing blue light of a portal. She could go home. She could survive!

All of her memories of the events she'd just witnessed were disappearing as she approached the portal. She was sure that when she stepped through the portal that she would wake up. She would be laying in her beautiful large bed at home, with Lillian right next to her demanding to play a game. Yes, nothing like her parents dying or Will transforming into a dark angel. Just her and her family around the Christmas tree.

She slowly reached out for the light, hoping that it would bring her to salvation, when she noticed how everything around her became dark. The light of the portal dimmed and Cornelia stepped back when she noticed how black smoke was gathering in front of her. She wanted to shriek but she couldn't find the energy to do so. Her legs gave away when the smoke formed the last person she wanted to see. Will looked down at her, her evil smirk still twisted on her face.

Cornelia watched in horror how Will snapped her fingers, making not only the portal disappear, but also recreate the forest. The portal and the rim of the forest…It had all been an illusion. It had never been here and Cornelia was sure that there wasn't even a portal to begin with.

Tears fell down her face as Cornelia hit the ground with her fists. The ground was hard beneath her and as she pounded, Cornelia could feel how the ground started to freeze. Will's merciless voice echoed softly through the air.

"Well, what do we have here? Finally seen your mistake? The mistake of not finishing me off when you had the chance?"

Cornelia couldn't speak, couldn't breathe. She just fell on the ground, her body having lost all of its energy. She had tried to fight and tried to run, yet none of it had mattered. She'd lost to Will, like always. She was sure that she would die from the pure lack of energy, but Will seemed to notice it as well. Cornelia felt how a powerful bolt of Quintessence hit her and she felt, next to the pain that it brought, how her energy got replenished.

"Get up."

Will's voice was demanding and even though Cornelia felt the impulse to obey her without question, she didn't do it. She couldn't. Her fear was paralyzing her.

The air around her started to swirl and she felt how it lifted her and threw her against a tree. Cornelia looked now right at Will and to her surprise she could see a silver aura enveloping Will. Hay Lin's aura.

The pieces were falling together. Now Cornelia finally understood what those jabs in her chest meant. Will had not only killed the other girls, but she'd also absorbed their powers.

As the pressure of the air started to fade away, Cornelia fell on her feet. She pushed herself away from the tree, not wanting to hear its blaming whispers. Her eyes went to Will and again Cornelia could feel her anger rising. Everything that happened to Will ended up to be in her advantage. She was a tomboy, yet she got the attention of Matt and Caleb. She was weak, yet she became Keeper of the Heart. She was left for death, yet she returned and became even stronger. Cornelia despised Will's luck. Cornelia despised Will.

"I hate you." She managed to utter.

Will snickered at that and started circling around her. Cornelia kept her eyes on Will, not wanting to give her the final victory.

"I know." Will replied. "I knew you hated me the moment you laid your pretty blue eyes on me. But, my dear Cornelia, you are a spoiled brat. I am not and that's our difference. I did not take things for granted, while you thought you were the queen of the world. That is your weakness."

Cornelia glared at Will, while trying to ignore her fear.

"Your weakness is that you care too much about other people." She spat back.

Will grinned.

"Not anymore. I eliminated that weakness. Just like I'm about to eliminate you."

Cornelia stepped back, her legs trembling again that made it almost impossible for her to stand straight. Should she fight back? For what? Her life that's now just a toy in Will's hands? Will. Will. It was always Will. The last year there hadn't been one day where she didn't think of Will or heard her name. Constantly reminding herself that she was better than her former leader and now her former leader was crumbling that image. Cornelia could see herself through Will's eyes. A cockroach and nothing more. And she didn't want that. She was better, stronger and more beautiful than all of the other Guardians and she would prove it.

"Earth!"

She willed the trees around her to do her bidding. She had to fight, no matter what. The trees started to shake and many vines shot at Will, but when Cornelia saw how a orange aura enveloped Will, the vines started to burn. Cornelia could feel the heat that was coming from Will and she stepped back, throwing rocks at Will as she went. But the rocks never hit. They were all electrocuted into rubble which fell harmlessly to the ground. The orange aura disappeared and the dark purple flame erupted to life again. Will's dark eyes pinpointing her.

"Hopeless."

The word echoed strongly. Cornelia shook even more and looked in fear at Will. Her hope was broken, her memories filled with horrible scenes and her body was through. She had lost.

Vines shot up from behind her and Cornelia could feel how the snaky plants wrapped themselves around her legs and arms. Sheer panic started to control her. Her own powers, her own plants were turning against her. The things she'd trusted with her life were now busy refraining her from movement. She tried to stop them, to undo the bindings, yet the plants wouldn't obey her. Nothing would obey her.

"Remember this Cornelia?" Will hissed angrily. "I do. I've dreamt of it for many months now. Seeing you, hanging in the same hopeless position as me when you left me to rot."

Cornelia looked up at Will and saw how Will clenched her fists. At the moment she did that, Cornelia felt a piercing sensation go through her whole body and screamed in pain. She could feel how the newly grown thorns were injecting their poison and as the foul liquid spread through her body, Cornelia felt the pain increase, which forced more tears down her cheeks.

"This poison is different than yours." Will said, as if she knew what sensation ran through Cornelia.

Cornelia looked up through her tears and she saw Will caressing one of the vines, which even seemed to like the attention. It hurt Cornelia more than the poison alone. Even her own plants betrayed her.

"This poison will make you feel the pain twice as hard."

Cornelia's eyes widened when more vines with thorns erupted from the ground in front of her. They were all moving as if they were yearning to hit her and Cornelia knew that Will would torture her to death.

She looked one more time at Will and she could see the sheer pleasure Will was having. Will reached for one of the vines and pulled it out of the ground. Cornelia could see the blood seeping past Will's wrist but at that moment the pink aura engulfed her and Cornelia shuddered. She could feel how Will's strength was increasing.

"Let's have some fun, shall we?"

Will signaled the vines to attack her and every time a vine whipped her Cornelia cried out of pain. The pain was worse than she could have imagined. The stinging sensation together with her now sensitive skin quickly managed to numb her whole body and yet every time a new vine hit, she could feel a new stab through her body. The vines didn't stop and Will herself sometimes whipped as well. Cornelia had already closed her eyes, not wanting to see her own body, but she knew it was Will because of the force behind the whip.

"You're holding longer than I expected. Which is good. A toy shouldn't break so easily, should it?"

Will's voice was taunting and crazy. Cornelia only cried in silence as the screams of earlier had made her voice disappear. Now she could only open her mouth in reaction to the pain she felt, with no sounds coming from her. Not long after that, Cornelia felt her mind going blank. There was nothing she could do, but to give up. The blackness that had been beckoning her for some minutes became more and more inviting and in the end, she gave up.

**…**

She could feel it. Will could feel how Cornelia's life left in an instant. She'd hoped that Cornelia would fall unconscious, because that way she could have forced her back to consciousness and torture her more, but it seemed that Cornelia had given up.

She sighed a bit in annoyance and reached for Cornelia's blooded body to finally take the last element as her own. Now that the Guardians were dead she could take some time to rest. She had to be rested before the big day.

Will looked up at the sky and grinned. It was true that she wondered why the Oracle had grown so weak. Had he forgotten that she could feel the powers on Kandrakar or was this just a trap? Not that it mattered. Kandrakar itself practically obeyed her so she could take them on whenever she wanted, but now the Oracle was weaker and it would make everything a lot easier.

Now that she thought about it, she had to expand her little group with a couple more knights. And she knew just who would do.

**…**

He woke up with tears in his eyes. Nigel couldn't believe it. Not only had he been captured by a crazy Will, Taranee had also left him to die and then died in a cruel way. Something which he was forced to watch. Nigel couldn't even blink, because every time he did so, he could see Taranee's burning head.

He clenched his fists as he looked aside. He couldn't believe it. He had really loved her, but she had betrayed him and he couldn't help but wonder if Taranee would have killed him too if he had become an impairment to her.

He heard a soft whimper beside him and he looked to see Eric laying in fetus position on the ground. Nigel couldn't bare the look of him and he went to wake Eric. Eric proved to be a deep sleeper yet Nigel managed to wake him after pushing him a bit rough.

"Eric!" He hissed, scared that Elyon or any of the other lackeys of Will would hear them and return. "Eric, wake up man!"

"HAY LIN!"

With a shock Eric got up, nearly head butting Nigel in the process. He looked around widely and Nigel couldn't help but look sadly at him. Neither of them had earned this and he wondered why they were even alive. He'd rather been dead than be tortured like this.

"Nigel! Will…She….She killed Hay Lin!" Eric said when he'd finally managed to get his act together.

Nigel sighed and looked sad at Eric, who seemed to be near crying. He'd never seen a guy this vulnerable, but then again, he'd never seen a girl's head on fire just by thoughts alone.

"I…I know." He said. "Will killed Taranee as well."

Eric stayed silent and Nigel felt tears coming up. He didn't want them, but every time he closed his eyes and saw Taranee's burning head the tears became more powerful. He could hear Eric sob softly and Nigel guessed that Eric was seeing Hay Lin every time he blinked.

"So you are awake?"

Nigel immediately jumped up and looked scared for his life at the person who'd been torturing him and Eric for no reason. Will stood smirking in front of the cage and Nigel could see several blood stains on her clothing and even on her face, but she didn't seem bothered and Nigel had to force himself to stop wondering to how Will had gotten those stains.

"What do you want from us?" Eric yelled, far louder than necessary, but Nigel guessed that it was because of the nerves that Eric yelled like a girl.

Will placed her hand on the bars and Nigel stepped back, his back against the wall opposite of the bars. He didn't want to get close to Will.

Will smiled sweetly at them and Nigel felt how the cage around them started to shudder.

"I want nothing from you, my dear _friends_." Will said, explicitly emphasizing the last word. "I only felt it to be my duty to show you the true colours of your girlfriends. I didn't want you to suffer like I had."

"Th..Then why did you force us to see their deaths?" Nigel asked, fear rattling his bones.

Will looked almost innocently at him and it made Nigel even more scared than he already was.

"Just a slight warning for you boys." She said calmly. "Now, I believe you want to go home?"

Nigel watched how the cage disappeared as Will glowed briefly green. The cage sunk into the air while the ceiling opened up. Now Nigel and Eric were free from their prison, but they also had no protection from Will.

"Y..You expect us to run?" Nigel stuttered.

Will laughed and Nigel winced as it echoed even more than before.

"Run? Goodness no. I've had my physical exercise for today. No, you can leave through this portal if you wish."

With those words Will created a portal near them. Nigel watched her suspiciously but Will kept her gaze on them. He couldn't help but feel humble in her presence. She was truly fit to rule. Eric was the first to move and he looked at the portal in silence.

"How…How can w..we tr…trust you?" He stammered.

Will rolled her eyes and started to walk away.

"That will be your problem. I'm going to my quarters. I bid you gentlemen a good day."

As the words 'good day' echoed through the throne room, Nigel looked at Eric. Eric replied with the same puzzled look and Nigel looked scared at the portal and Will. How could they be sure that they could leave like this?

He saw Will stopping at the door opening and looked at them as if she remembered something just now.

"Ah yes. If you ever feel that you need me, just call." She said, followed with a hollow laugh as she walked off.

Nigel found himself looking once more at Eric as the latter spoke.

"What…What do you think she meant with that?"

Nigel shrugged and looked pensively at the portal. It looked like the through which they'd come but how could he be sure that he would return to Earth? He wanted to ask Eric's opinion when he suddenly heard the scream of the snake man. His eyes widened in fear and he could see how Eric mirrored his look.

"Shall we?" He asked pale. "I don't want to stay here and end up as snake chow."

Nigel nodded and braced himself. He looked back once more, seeing the scorching spots of where Taranee's parents had been standing and the bodies of the Lins and Lairs. He shivered as he once again saw Taranee's flaming corpse. He had to get away from here and warn Earth. Perhaps they could do something, though he truly doubted that. No one would believe him anyway, but he had to try.

He stepped through the portal and the instant that he'd gone through it, he heard the familiar noises of Heatherfield. He looked around to see that they'd landed on the city dump and he could see the portal closing right behind them the moment Eric had stepped through it.

"How can everything be so normal after what we've seen?" He heard Eric whisper, but Nigel didn't answer.

Instead he walked away, hoping to find his parents at home. Hoping to sleep this off as one terrible dream. Perhaps he could convince the police or the mayor about what he'd seen, but even now as he thought of it, he doubted it. Everything he'd seen was so surreal, yet he could remember everything so clearly that it hurt.

He just hoped that this nightmare would disappear soon enough.

**…**

Wh-What had happened?

Taranee groaned softly as she pulled herself up. Her eyes were still closed, yet she could see that she was in a greatly lit place. She wanted to open her eyes when a sudden jab of pain coursed through her head and she groaned loudly as she grabbed it. What was wrong with her? Why was it feeling as if her head was burning?

Burning.

Taranee's eyes snapped open and she immediately regretted it. The light around her only increased her headache and made her yelp in pain. She closed her eyes again and rubbed them, waiting for the headache to numb a bit.

She breathed slowly. She'd recognized the walls around her. She was in Kandrakar, though it was more purple than she could remember. She didn't wonder why she was here. She knew Will had killed her. The thing that actually worried Taranee was that she didn't feel any fire. She couldn't feel the fire that had been burning inside of her ever since she'd become a Guardian. Had Will taken her powers? Was that possible?

More groans echoed next to her and Taranee carefully opened her eyes again. She looked around and found the other girls laying knock-out on the ground. Irma was the first one to awaken after her and Taranee raised an eyebrow at Irma, as the latter suddenly sat up and started to cough violently.

"I hate drinking games!"

Taranee looked in even more amazement at Irma, wondering what Will had done to her. She saw Irma looking around the room before her eyes settled on Taranee. Taranee smiled sadly at her, but Irma looked down. Taranee watched in silence how Irma pushed herself from the ground and went to sit further away from the group. What was wrong with her?

Taranee couldn't wonder long because now Hay Lin was waking up. She was breathing heavily and Taranee thought for a second that Hay Lin was hyper venting, when she shot up and looked wildly through the room. When her eyes found Irma, Hay Lin started to cry and ran at her, hugging her nearly boneless.

Taranee looked worried at the two. Irma wasn't even attempting to sooth Hay Lin. She just looked awkwardly at the petite Chinese, while Hay Lin just sobbed.

"Ir..Irma!" Hay Lin said. "I…I saw you! Dead! I'm so glad you're back!"

Taranee didn't think it was appropriate to tell Hay Lin that they'd all died and smiled sadly when the youngest member of their group noticed her. Hay Lin released Irma from her hug and ran to Taranee.

Taranee managed to stay standing when Hay Lin tackled her and hugged her back, glad to see that someone was still normal.

"She got you too, huh?" She said softly.

Hay Lin only sobbed but then let go. She pointed at her own chest and breathed slowly.

"She…She made me…My lungs exploded." Hay Lin said softly, shivering at the memory.

Taranee saw how fragile Hay Lin was at the moment and she hugged her again.

"You got off easily." She said, though she was not trying to joke. "My brain got fried because of an overload of memories and thoughts. It still hurts."

Hay Lin only sobbed and hugged tighter.

"But..But she burnt my wings too, Taranee! My wings…"

Taranee softly shushed the little girl in her arms. She knew that wings were everything for Hay Lin. Hay Lin sobbing stopped gradually and they separated again. During their exchange Irma had walked up to them. Taranee was quite shocked to see Irma crying. She'd thought that Irma would have had a witty remark or something along those lines.

"I…I was drowned." She barely managed to say before she turned her head.

Taranee had a feeling that Irma wasn't asking for hugs, but Hay Lin still went and hugged her. Irma didn't answer the hug, but she placed her head on the shoulder of the younger girl and cried loudly. Taranee knew that there was more than just her death that was bothering Irma. Will had been taunting her as well, but perhaps it hurt Irma more than it was hurting her.

Taranee sadly looked at the last member of their team. The person who was the blame for almost everything. And even if she was angered by what had happened, Taranee couldn't find it in herself to hurt Cornelia. All of them were to blame. Cornelia just had the unfortunate luck to be the ignition to this event.

As Irma's sobs started to diminish, a new sobbing filled the room. Taranee saw Cornelia slowly moving and she could see the tears rolling down her cheeks. When Cornelia's eyes flew open, she stayed on the ground. Slowly she started to look around and when she found the other three, Taranee could see the look of pain, regret and fear in the eyes of the Earth Guardian.

Taranee slowly moved to Cornelia. Cornelia did not move but Taranee could see the fear of the girl.

"Cornelia… I… Don't blame you." Taranee said slowly. "We are all the blame of this, not just you."

Cornelia was still shivering and Taranee had the feeling that Will had been torturing Cornelia in many ways. Not that she was surprised. Cornelia had been the one who had done most of the damage.

She bent over, trying to help Cornelia up, when she spoke.

"Please…Don't touch me." Cornelia muttered. "My body is aching all over."

Taranee stopped her attempt of helping Cornelia and turned to look at Hay Lin and Irma. She could see how Hay Lin was forcing Irma to come with her, while Irma's face was dark. Taranee sighed and went to sit next to Cornelia. Irma and Hay Lin quickly followed and sat down near her.

"So… Seeing that none of us is in the mood to kill the other." Irma said darkly. "What do you think we should do?"

Taranee scowled at Irma, who barely shrugged.

"I don't think Kandrakar is all too happy with us, don't you agree?" She added.

At this Cornelia snickered a bit. It was true. Kandrakar would probably punish them or something along those lines. They truly were the worst Guardians in history.

"You think?"

Taranee froze when she heard the voice. It was impossible. He'd died a long time ago and he wasn't associated with Kandrakar, was he? She turned her head and looked around and gulped loudly. Hay Lin gasped and Irma groaned slightly.

At the other side of the room the door had opened and it was showing not only C.H.Y.K.N., but also Luba, Tibor, Alfor and Angelo. And all of them were scowling at the girls.

"An..Angelo?" Taranee stammered surprised.

"Grandma?" Hay Lin squeaked, seemingly scared of her own grandmother.

"Nerissa?" Irma uttered amazed.

Taranee looked at the whole group and noticed Nerissa smirking in the back.

"Welcome girls." She said with a hollow voice. "Welcome to hell."

_**[A/N] WAIT WHAT? Angelo is in Kandrakar? The girls went to Kandrakar? And the most important question. Will spared Eric and Nigel? What the hell is wrong with these people? What happened? Why did it happen? And why is the Oracle weakening?**_

_**All these questions and more will be answered in due time, readers. But for now you just have to wait. ^^**_

_**Also my apologies for the late update. I'm in the middle of my exams and I had to study. **_

_**Now, be nice and review and maybe I will get the next chapter done before Christmas.**_

_**REVIEW! ;)**_


	16. Chapter 15 Blame and relief

**Chapter 15 Blame and relief**

No. Of all the people she did not want to see. Why was her grandmother here? Why was Hay Lin herself here in Kandrakar? Her grandmother would see her and…And…

Silent tears ran over her cheeks as she tried to hide away from her grandmother's look. She wasn't worthy to look at her grandmother. She'd always adored her and when she first became Guardian, she'd wished to be like her grandmother. Instead she'd ruined everything. She was a disgrace. Not only for her family, but to the title of Guardian as well.

"There are the tears. I already wondered when they came." She could hear Nerissa say. "Finally regretting not finishing your job?"

"Nissa. They weren't supposed to try to kill Will to begin with." She heard her grandmother scowl.

"I know." Nerissa replied. "But they did a crappy job in ignoring the Oracle. I thought I was a better role model."

"You were."

Hay Lin looked shocked at Cornelia's laying figure and saw how the blonde was scowling at Nerissa. Cornelia really didn't realize that they were lost, did she?

"You learnt Will how to plan everything! We couldn't retaliate! We didn't even know she was still alive!" Cornelia spat as she slowly tried to get up, wincing in the process.

"How could you?"

Hay Lin looked back at the group of Kandrakar, seeing Angelo looking angered at them, tears in his own eyes.

"Will had been there for you and you only betrayed her! Does friendship really mean so little to you?" He said and Hay Lin noticed he clenched his fists.

Hay Lin shook her head. No, friendship did hold a meaning to her. She had forgotten about it when she'd been so blinded with power, but it did hold a meaning. It meant that she could trust her friends. It meant that she would never betray the others, but in the end she failed.

"Now you've broken the sacred bonds of friendship."

Hay Lin stiffened when she heard her grandmother speak. Nerissa did sigh in the background, but Yan Lin kept speaking.

"What did the betrayal give you? The death of your families in gruesome ways and a one way ticket to Kandrakar for you." Yan Lin continued and Hay Lin winced slightly at the harsh tone of her grandmother.

"You guys must be proud of yourself." Kadma said, her voice cold and filled with sadness.

Hay Lin didn't look up. She knew they were right and she was regretting it, but she knew that regretting her actions would not turn time back. Tears kept falling down her face and she could hear both Cornelia and Irma sobbing as well.

"There come the tears. A bit late." Luba sneered. "You should be glad. If it were up to me I would have sent you straight to Hell or back to Will to get another beating."

Hay Lin's tears became even more and soft involuntarily sobs came from her. She didn't want to break down completely. She had been trying to keep herself from breaking down in front of Will, but now she couldn't stop herself. She pulled up her knees and hugged them, while muttering her apologies. Over her sobs she could hear someone getting up.

"Luba, calm yourself." Tibor said angrily. "There is no point in blaming them now."

"Blaming us?"

Hay Lin stopped sobbing when she heard the high-pitched voice of Taranee. Taranee was normally calm and silent and her voice only became high-pitched when she was angry. She looked up and saw Taranee glaring at the people near the door.

"You people carry as much blame as we do!" Taranee nearly yelled while tears fell down her cheeks. "Yes, we made the biggest mistake in our lives. Yes, we've pretty much paid for it in a horrid fashion. But you are to blame as well! You could have stopped us! You could have stopped Will or you could have warned her about us! But did you do any of those things? No. You only sat back and watched how we destroyed the balance in the worlds. If I think about it, this is almost completely your fault. If we'd never become Guardians, we would have never betrayed Will for Phobos, Will would never have managed to become so powerful and we wouldn't have started to apocalypse!"

"Guardian, you dare not speak of Kandrakar in such tone!" Tibor said menacingly.

"After all we've done for you, this is our thanks?" Alfor said, almost sounding hurt but also enraged.

"You almost sound like your leader, blaming us for everything." Luba sneered.

"Enough!"

Hay Lin looked in shock at Taranee, who was now trembling. The tears had stained her glasses and her fists were clenched. Sobs became audible from her but she kept standing.

"Enough already." Taranee begged. "We know we've done wrong. We've seen our parents die right in front of us in the most horrid ways. We've been killed with our own elements. We've been tortured. Look at them. Hay Lin is shivering like a leaf and she hasn't spoken a word since you entered. Irma keeps looking suspiciously at us and she backs away with every sign of kindness we show her, as if she thinks she isn't good enough for it. And Cornelia… Even I can feel the fear Cornelia is feeling. I don't know what Will did to them, but I know it was worse than what she did to me. Please, we've been punished enough."

Hay Lin looked back at the group near the door. Angelo was still scowling, though his eyes also shone with concern. Cassidy, Kadma and Halinor looked sadly at them, showing that they understood them. Even Nerissa seemed to feel a little bit of compassion. Luba was still scoffing and Tibor and Alfor shook their heads.

Then she caught her grandmother's look. Her grandmother had only been looking at her and Hay Lin could see the concern in her eyes, aside from the disappointment. Hay Lin wanted to walk to her grandmother when Luba spoke up and Hay Lin looked at her.

"So only because you have been tortured you think that you've been punished enough?" She said, her voice soft and dangerous.

Hearing this meant that there would be more punishment waiting for them and Hay Lin only watched in silence as Taranee shook her head slowly, her hair hiding her eyes in a shadow.

"The torture was not bad." Taranee said softly, making Hay Lin wonder what Will had done to her if she thought that the torture wasn't that bad. For Hay Lin it had been a hell.

Taranee looked up, her eyes fierce yet full of pain as more tears ran over her cheeks.

"Will's torture was nothing compared to the torture I had given myself for following my greedy needs. Because…In the end… I lost the only thing that actually mattered. My friends. I lost Will because I was too spineless to deny power. And I've regretted it ever since."

Hay Lin stayed silent. She had never wanted to acknowledge it, but she felt like that as well. She only didn't dare to speak of it because she was scared that the others would do the same to her as they'd done to Will. She had been a coward, but she didn't want to look spineless in front of Irma and Cornelia. If only she'd known how Taranee had felt about it. Then perhaps they could have stopped it.

"Is this the truth, Taranee?" Angelo said, his voice heavy with tears.

"I…I am sorry." Taranee said. "I'm sorry Angelo."

"I'm sorry as well." Hay Lin said, surprised by her own words. "I…I didn't know… If I'd known about Taranee, perhaps we could have stopped it. But I didn't want to leave Irma."

As she said that she looked at her best friend. Irma was looking at the ground and shook her head.

"Yeah…Well… I did it voluntarily and never regretted it… Until now then." Irma said softly.

Though Hay Lin had known this from the beginning, it was still hurting her to hear those words from Irma. She'd hoped her friend had been nicer to other people.

"Same goes for me." Cornelia said softly. "I mean… I don't know… I felt threatened by Will. She just appeared and took over without a warning. And Phobos…He made me feel special again. And his idea was so easy… You know…. Will wasn't so bad. She was nice and she listened when I talked. Okay…. I am a horrible person."

A new silence ruled in the chamber and Hay Lin saw how her grandmother walked over to her and hugged her tightly. Hay Lin hugged her back, even if she felt she didn't deserve to, but she needed some kindness.

"This is the first step to repentance." Her grandmother said.

"I… I accept your apology, Hay Lin." She heard Angelo say. "And yours too Taranee. But I cannot accept theirs."

Hay Lin knew that Angelo was still hating Irma and Cornelia. She could understand why, she just wished he didn't. But she had already learnt that wishes didn't come true.

"This is all very touching, but I do think we should make haste." Nerissa said, interrupting the hug between Yan Lin and Hay Lin.

Hay Lin looked up surprised, seeing that Nerissa was motioning them to follow her. The rest of the group was already gone, but Hay Lin stayed put. Could she trust Nerissa? And why did they have to make haste?

She could see the same distrust in the eyes of the other girls, though she guessed that it was also the distrust in each other that she was reading. She sought for Taranee's gaze and silently asked her question. She could see how Taranee looked at the rather down Irma and the completely scared Cornelia before turning to Hay Lin and nodding. She then started to follow Nerissa. Hay Lin nodded at her grandmother before walking to Irma. She could see Irma looking at her in fear and she even winced away when Hay Lin went to take her hand. Hay Lin pressed on and she took Irma's hand. She could feel the fear Irma held for her and Hay Lin couldn't help but wonder through what horror Irma had gone before Will killed her.

She quickly went for Cornelia's hand as well and managed to grab it before Cornelia jumped away in fear. These two had gotten the worst torture before death, Hay Lin was sure of it.

She slowly managed to pull them along. She didn't want to stay in the room and she was curious to why they were in Kandrakar and why they needed to make haste. As she pulled Irma and Cornelia out of the room, she could see Angelo waiting for her. She smiled awkwardly at him, which he returned before giving both Cornelia and Irma an evil eye. The two seemed to get the hint and ran after Taranee, who was a little further down the hallway. Hay Lin wanted to run after them, but Angelo grabbed her hand and kept her back. The two walked slowly, but fast enough to keep the group in sight.

"Angelo?" Hay Lin asked, looking worried.

Angelo had been Will's best friend and she was scared he would still seek revenge for betraying her, even if he said he wouldn't. She also felt her guilt grow the longer she looked at him.

"Hay Lin."

Hay Lin could hear that he was still angry with her, but she remained calm. Anything he would do to her would be a fair punishment for her deeds.

"You, as well as the other three, should watch out for Luba." Angelo said softly, but Hay Lin looked surprised.

"Why? Is she working for Will?" Hay Lin whispered concerned.

Angelo shook his head.

"No, but she'd almost been cheering when Will went hunting you. She hates Will for what she is now, but she hates you for what you've done. In her eyes, you are worse than Nerissa." He explained.

Hay Lin looked down. She wasn't really surprised. Luba had never been too friendly with them, but now she had all reason to hate them with a passion.

Angelo seemed done talking and wanted to join the others when Hay Lin's curiousity was struck once more.

"Angelo? Why are we here in Kandrakar? I thought only those loyal to Kandrakar were allowed to stay here after death? And for that matter, why are you here?" She questioned.

Angelo's look didn't predict much, but it was the way he was evading her look that made her feel wary.

"Well…" He said. "I'm here because I am the grandson of Kadma…"

Hay Lin looked surprised at him, but then frowned.

"So you're only here because of that connection? Did you even hear of Kandrakar before all this?" Hay Lin questioned.

Angelo grinned awkwardly at her.

"Well, grandma K used to tell me stories about Guardians, but I'd always thought that they were fairytales." He replied.

"So you're just here because of that?" Hay Lin repeated.

Angelo nodded.

"Yes, that and the fact that I know how to handle a sword. They said they needed every hand they could get to fend off Will."

Hay Lin's heart stopped. Did he just say 'fend off Will'? Did that mean that they had to face Will again? She didn't want that. She didn't want to be tortured like that again.

Tears ran over her face as she stopped walking. She grabbed Angelo by his shoulders and made him look at her.

"A..Angelo… Is that the reason why we're here?" She asked him softly. "Do we need to try and stop Will from destroying Kandrakar?"

She could see Angelo's regret in his eyes, but before he could answer her, the sound of magical attacks came from the room the group just entered. Angelo and Hay Lin followed quickly, only to see a lady resembling the Mage of Meridian laying against a wall unconscious while Nerissa was panting and Luba brushing off some dust.

"What happened here?" Angelo asked, unsheathing his sword.

"Don't worry, Angelo." Kadma said. "We just had a little quarrel with the Guardian of the Shrine of Powers. She wasn't really happy with what we were planning to do, but if we don't…"

"Then Will might find out about it and claim it for herself. And if that happens, all hope will be lost." Halinor finished gravely.

"Shrine of Powers?" Irma repeated. "What could be here that would possibly make Will even more scarier?"

Hay Lin backed away a little when she saw Nerissa's insane smirk. It resembled Will's so vividly that Hay Lin got a temporary flashback of when Will was chasing her. Her knees started to tremble and she nearly fell over if Angelo hadn't caught her.

"Everything okay?" He asked.

"Just a minor flashback." Hay Lin replied.

Her eyes went back to Nerissa, who was standing again and looking at everyone.

"Now, _Guardians_." She said, making sure her last word sounded as sarcastic as possible. "You've got a choice. Either fight against Will to protect Kandrakar with powers or without."

Fear immediately grabbed Hay Lin's heart and she started to hyperventilate. The others were all standing and looking in utter fear at the group who brought them here.

"WHAT?" Irma yelled at the top of her lungs, her eyes wide open in fear.

"Please tell us that's a joke!" Cornelia pleaded.

Hay Lin saw the sadistic smile on Luba's face and she felt how the blood started to rush out of her head. She started to feel lightheaded and if it weren't for Angelo she would have fainted right away.

"I'm sorry, but we need people to stall Will when she attacks." Alfor said.

"And you're going to use us as meat shield?" Irma countered. "I know I am classified as evil by you guys, but this is plain cruel. Have you seen Will? She. Is. EVIL."

"You can always jump into infinity." Nerissa said casually. "But there is no guarantee that Will isn't simply able to pull you back up, seeing that she is the Heart of Kandrakar."

Hay Lin's heart kept racing as she looked at her friends. All of them were silent but she could see the fear in their eyes. So she was right. They were here just to stop Will.

"It…It is impossible." She managed to stutter, gaining the attention of everyone. "Will is too strong. We were nothing."

Nerissa grinned at her and gestured at the big door behind her.

"That's why we're here." She said. "We are going to get ourselves a little power boost."

"How?" Irma asked, but Hay Lin could still hear the fear in her voice.

"Behind these doors lay the pure essence of your powers, including Will's." Halinor explained. "With those we can power up to the same level as Will's."

Cornelia looked skeptically at Halinor.

"Everyone of us at Will's level? Sounds a bit too good to be true, doesn't it?" She said.

"That's because it is." Luba sneered back. "If those powers were to be separated over 5 people, then each of you would hold the same strength as Will, but seeing that we've got five Ex-Guardians and four…_Guardians_ your power will be split. By me."

She said the last part as she looked at Nerissa, who only shrugged and nodded.

"Stop your glaring cat woman." Nerissa said annoyed. "I know what's at stake. That girl is ruining my vision as well as yours so let's get on with this."

Hay Lin felt a bit reassured that she would get her powers back, or at least a bit of them, but she still wasn't sure. She really didn't want to fight Will, even if they could match her with nine versus one. Even in her mind that sounded terribly overpowered.

"So this will give the nine of us together the power equal to three Hearts?" Cornelia asked slowly. "And with it we need to stop Will once and for all?"

"Three Hearts?" Tibor said surprised. "Guardian, last time I checked the Guardian Leader only held the Heart of Kandrakar and that of Earth."

Hay Lin was surprised as well at first, until she remembered how Will made everything freeze around her. It had been the aura around her that made Hay Lin's eyes grow big. So Will was the reason she didn't have any powers, not Kandrakar!

"Will took our powers immediately after we died." Cornelia said. "I've seen her using air and fire and I even saw Hay Lin's aura when Will attacked me."

Hay Lin saw the others pale and she felt her hope falter. So they were brought to Kandrakar for nothing?

"That doesn't matter." Nerissa said shortly. "We just have to stall the girl anyway possible."

"But…" Irma said.

"But nothing!" Cassidy said, her voice slightly more high-pitched than usual. "We either keep Will away from the Oracle, or the universe is doomed! And believe me that I will not help you guys run from Will when that happens!"

Hay Lin remained silent. So this was her punishment. Facing Will again. Well, if she had to then perhaps she could show that she was not nothing. Perhaps she could repent a bit.

"I… I will help." She said softly. "I…I want to repent a bit and if that means facing Will again then so be it."

She could see the surprise on Irma's face as well as that on Cornelia's. Angelo nodded encouragingly and she could see her grandmother smile at her a bit.

"I will go too. You will need all the help you can get and if the Oracle is busy with stopping Will, then I will give him all the time he needs." Taranee said bravely.

Hay Lin looked at her friend and she grinned, while Taranee smiled back in reply. Hay Lin then looked pleadingly at Cornelia and Irma, but both shook their heads.

"I…I am scared." Cornelia muttered. "She's so wicked."

"How are you guys so sure I won't betray you to her? Or how can I be sure you won't betray me?" Irma said softly.

Hay Lin looked concerned at them. Without them their chances would drop.

"All in favor for using those two as meat shield?" Nerissa said calmly, making Hay Lin look at her in shock.

"Nissa, how much we dislike them, that's a bit too much don't you think?" Cassidy said annoyed.

Hay Lin looked shocked at Nerissa, who merely shrugged.

"It's either that or they fight. Who knows how much time we've left?" She said clearly annoyed.

Hay Lin had the nasty feeling that Will wouldn't wait long and she knew the others were thinking the same. She saw both Irma and Cornelia look concerned at each other and Hay Lin wished that she could do something to help them.

"Irma, I'll be with you. Don't worry. I won't leave you." Taranee said softly, grabbing Irma's hand in the process.

Irma's eyes became wide, but Hay Lin smiled when Irma nodded and squeezed Taranee's hand. She believed in Irma, because making mistakes was human. Even if their mistakes pretty much doomed humanity.

Hay Lin also got courage from Taranee's action and went to Cornelia, who quickly backed away. Hay Lin could see the fear in Cornelia's eyes and worse, she saw her own fear reflected. Despite that she grabbed Cornelia's hand and pulled her toward her, hugging her closely.

"Let me go Hay Lin." Cornelia muttered as she tried to break free from Hay Lin's grasp.

Hay Lin kept a hold on Cornelia, trying to stop her desperate struggle to free herself.

"I'm scared too, Cornelia." Hay Lin whispered hoarsely. "But if we don't do something we will all die..Again."

She felt Cornelia grab her fiercely. She winced a bit because of the sudden move until she felt Cornelia shiver.

"She made me…She made me feel worthless, powerless… As if I lost control over everything." Cornelia whispered scared. "I don't want to feel like that again."

Hay Lin's breathing stopped for a bit but she then continued with hugging Cornelia. For Cornelia, control was everything. Without it she was lost. And Will knew that and broke her.

"But you were alone." Hay Lin whispered softly. "All alone in the forest, just like us. Now we are together. We're stronger, right? We'll stop her together."

Cornelia was still looking scared, but it was Taranee's hand on Cornelia's shoulder that made Hay Lin look up. She saw Taranee looking encouragingly at Cornelia and even Irma looked at them, though still a bit weary. Hay Lin pulled the two of them into her hug as well and for the first time since long, she felt happy again. She just wished she was hugging Will as well.

"Very cute." Nerissa sneered, breaking their hug. "So, what will it be? In or out?"

"You mean in or meat shield, right?" Irma said with a wry smile. "But I'm in. If we cannot stop her permanently than I want to have managed to kick her ass for a bit."

"I..I'm in as well." Cornelia said with a wavering smile. "You guys are right, together we're stronger. And Will will feel that."

"I'm in." Taranee said with a sad smile. "We need to stop her, no matter what."

Hay Lin nodded as well.

"I'm in… But how will the Oracle stop Will? What kind of spell is he preparing?"

She saw Luba scowling at her while Nerissa merely shrugged.

"Ah, if I only knew." She said nonchalantly. "But the only ones who know would be the Kandrakarian Council and guess what? We're not in it."

Hay Lin raised an eyebrow and looked questioningly at her grandmother, who also indicated that she didn't know the Oracle's spell.

"It's better that you don't know." Halinor said. "The less people who know about it, the safer the secret is. If Will found out prematurely then she might just try to break through us instead of trying to kill us slowly."

Hay Lin shivered when Halinor said the last sentence. She was hoping to postpone that option for as long as possible. Better yet, avoid it. She heard the nervous swallows of the others but none of them backed away. They knew that backing away meant a worse death.

Luba growled softly while Tibor turned to the large doors on the other side of the room. As he opened it Irma breathed a soft laugh.

"Well… As long as the Veil is up we don't have to really worry, right? I mean, to make a portal to Kandrakar costs a lot of energy, right? And taking it down will also take a lot of energy, right? So Will will be weaker, no worries." She said with a half smile.

Even though it was a small hope, it was at least something. She saw her smile mirrored by the others, though that smile faltered when she started to notice that the purple, which had been enveloping Kandrakar, started to flicker. A great flash followed afterwards and Hay Lin found herself looking at a white Kandrakar.

"Wh… What just happened?" Hay Lin asked scared, wondering if Will was already attacking.

She could see the unrest in her grandmother's eyes and she heard Luba whisper fiercely with Tibor and Alfor.

"She has lifted the Veil." Halinor said, interrupting the ruckus.

This of course made Hay Lin's heart beat wildly.

"Me and my big mouth." She heard Irma mutter scared.

"Does this mean Will is coming here right now?" She squeaked, her voice so high pitched that she would attract bats.

"Calm down Hay Lin." Halinor said, though she too sounded stressed. "Taking down the Veil costs a lot of energy. At least we will have today to strengthen out defenses. After that..Who knows."

"Then stop wasting time. Come, I shall bestow upon you the pure elements." Luba said grouchily as she entered the other room.

The elderly quickly followed and Angelo nodded encouragingly at them. Hay Lin looked at the girls one more time. She saw their fear and determination and she swallowed softly. It was now, or never.

**…**

"WHAAAAA!"

Eric shot up, sitting straight in his bed and looking at the dark wall of his room. This was the fifth time he woke up this evening. Again from a nightmare, again from Hay Lin. His eyes went to his alarm clock and he could see it was only 7 o'clock in the morning. It had been ten hours since he and Nigel had been allowed to return to Earth, after watching terrible events. When he'd arrived at home, his parents had been worried. They'd asked him why he hadn't called them in the past weeks but Eric had found that he couldn't say a word. He had just hugged his mother and started crying.

His parents had known that something was wrong with him and as they helped him into bed, Eric had started to tell them the story about Hay Lin, her friends and Will. The looks on his parents' faces told him that they did not believe him, but they also looked worried. They'd probably thought that he'd used drugs of some sorts.

Eric wished it had been drugs. Because if it were, he wouldn't experience these awful nightmares. And because he would meet Hay Lin later this day.

When his mind went to Hay Lin, his fists clenched and tears appeared. She had lied to him. He wasn't bothered when she revealed that she was a Guardian. He could even understand why she hadn't told him before. But what had hurt him was that she hadn't told him that she'd killed Will together with the others, or at least attempted to. And when she ran away from him, to save herself, was the moment his heart really broke. He truly wondered if she'd loved him at all or if he was just a boy toy, like Caleb had been for Cornelia.

Eric shook his head and roughly wiped his tears away. He slowly got out of bed, knowing that he would not sleep peacefully and he was sure that his latest scream had awakened his parents once again. As he reached for his cupboard to get some clean pair of socks and a clean underwear, his eye fell on a picture with him and Hay Lin together. His heart was beating furiously and his memory showed him once again how Hay Lin's chest exploded and he quickly flipped the picture, making it face the cupboard.

At that exact moment his mother entered the room, looking tired yet concerned at him.

"Eric? Is everything alright? We've heard you screaming again." She said.

Eric felt a sudden wave of anger. His parents had come to him throughout the night and every time he told him of what he'd dreamt off, they would pass it as a nightmare. But it wasn't just a nightmare, just the cold truth.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He said bitterly. "I just dreamt of how my girlfriend left me all alone with her psycho friend and then saw how she was brutally murdered. Other than that I'm fine."

His mother looked shocked at him and he felt regret immediately after. His mother only wanted to help him, though Eric wondered if she could help him at all.

"Eric, you do not use that tone to me." His mother said angrily. "I only want to help you."

"By not believing me." Eric finished, cursing himself again.

But his mother could not understand him and she was only making things worse.

"I do believe you!" His mother said shocked.

Eric turned to his mother and made eye contact.

"Mother, I'm no longer a child. Go to bed. Perhaps you will have sweet dreams. Because I know I will never have them again." He said darkly.

He could hear how his mother let out a soft sob and Eric just shook his head. He regretted it, speaking like that to his own mother. But she could not help him and she should stop trying to do so.

He quickly showered and grabbed some bread before leaving the house. He did not want to face his parents. Not until nightfall that is.

He pulled his collar tighter and he shivered in the cold air, though it was nothing compared to the cold Will had been spreading. As he rounded a corner once again, not knowing to where he'd been walking, he stopped. He was looking straight at the police station. What was he doing here? If his parents didn't believe him than why would the police believe him? Because he knew something about officer Lair? He couldn't just walk up to them and tell them that one of their men got burnt to death by his own acid, could he?

No, they would call him crazy. Especially so early in the morning.

Eric shook his head with a sigh, a small cloud of breath appearing in front of him and turned away. Perhaps a walk could clear his mind.

As he started to walk away, he heard a ruckus coming from the police station. He turned around just in time to see how a couple of cops forced someone out of the building. Eric's eyes widened as he recognized the guy who'd been thrown out.

"Wait!" Nigel yelled as the cops walked away. "Believe me! We're all in great danger!"

The cops scowled at him.

"Go away kid!" One of them said. "Joking about the so called death of an officer is not funny."

"Especially not when you talk about magic. How old are you? Five?" The other said.

Eric hurried to Nigel as the latter fell on his knees and slammed his hand on the ground. Eric could hear him sob and he quickly helped his friend up.

"Nigel… What were you doing?" He asked surprised.

"I… I woke up, Eric." Nigel said, sounding terrified. "I.. I dreamt of Taranee and how she died. And not just once, but multiple times. So I started walking through town, but that was when I realized that we're in great danger! Will could easily take down Earth and add it to her kingdom! So I wanted to warn the police, so they could bring it to FBI, you know? But…"

"They didn't believe you." Eric said softly, feeling his anger and sadness rise.

Nigel nodded sadly and then yelled in anger.

"Why are we so damned powerless? Why are we the ones punished?" He questioned angered.

"Why did our girlfriends pull us into this?" Eric added angered.

Nigel looked shocked at Eric.

"Dude, are you blaming the girls?" Nigel asked, almost angered.

Eric realized what he'd said and he closed his mouth. He looked away and watched how shops slowly started to open and cars started to pass by. Perhaps he had been too hard, but it didn't matter how much he thought about it. The girls always ended up as the main culprit.

"I… I don't know dude." He said confused. "I'm just so lost."

Nigel patted him on the shoulder and looked at him.

"I know." He said, his voice broken. "Shall we… Hang out and hope to forget all this?"

Eric sighed as he looked at the grey sky above him. What else could he do, except from getting completely drunk? He shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pocket. Maybe spending time with Nigel would cool him off.

**…**

Caleb looked in concern as the power bubble around Will faded and she fell to the ground with a soft moan. Caleb rushed to her and managed to catch her just before she hit the ground. He saw how her eyes fluttered close and how her breathing became slower. Her wings hang weakly past his arms.

He knew that she'd been trying to lift the Veil and by the smile on her face, he reckoned she'd managed to do so. He had thought she could break that thing with ease, but she'd been trying to break it for at least four hours.

He carried her to her chambers, passing many servants in the progress. He also saw Cedric but Cedric had only glanced and raised an eyebrow. Caleb growled but said nothing. There was no sense in arguing with Cedric. Especially not after they'd taken revenge so brilliantly. He just wished that everything, including Will's revenged on Kandrakar, was over. Perhaps he could get her to calm down, to enjoy life again.

He sighed. He knew that these dreams were not likely to come true. But it didn't matter to him. He would stay by Will's side.

Will squirmed in his arms as he opened the door to her chambers. He stopped walking and looked down at her as she slowly opened her eyes. She looked surprised at first but when her eyes caught him glancing at her, she smiled. It warmed his heart to see her slightly twisted smile and he continued walking to her bed, placing her on it.

"And?" He asked softly.

She let out a soft laugh and stretched a bit.

"The Veil is lifted, but it was one tough cracker." She said almost casually, her voice still holding the echo like it had during her fight with the Guardians. "I can't wait for tomorrow."

Caleb lifted his eyebrow and looked skeptically at her. She had said something about attacking Kandrakar tomorrow, not giving much information. He wondered why she was so eager to attack Kandrakar, while she could also wait and train more. He also wondered why she needed them to go with her. She was powerful enough, wasn't she?

"Something on your mind?" Will asked, her voice soft and seducing.

Caleb swallowed involuntarily and nodded.

"Well, why do you want to attack Kandrakar tomorrow?" He asked quietly.

Will sighed and positioned herself on the bed so that her back was resting against the wall and she was sitting straight. She looked him straight in the eyes and her wings curved easily around her form.

"I can feel it, Caleb." She said softly, almost sounding insecure. "The Oracle is weakening. I don't know why, but it can't be good. It's better to take advantage of it now."

Caleb thought he saw a flicker of fear and insecurity in Will's eyes but then she blinked it away. He nodded slowly before another thought struck him.

"But why take us?" He asked softly. "You are powerful enough to take on the Oracle and his few lackeys."

Will smiled at him, a different smile from which she normally wore. This one was warmer and it made him smile in return, just because she was happy.

"I thank you for that compliment, but you should know it would be stupid to take our enemies lightly." She said calmly. "It could still be a trap and that's why I want you guys with me."

"Just Elyon, Cedric, Miranda and me?" Caleb asked in return, knowing that Will was implying more.

Will shook her head and got out of her bed. She slowly walked to her window and looked at him, gesturing for him to come over. Caleb obeyed and silently joined her near the window, looking down. His heart thumped a little louder when he saw two men being brought into the castle. The two were trying to wrestle their way out of the grip of the guards and Caleb was sure that they were screaming.

"Nice to see our friends again, huh?" Will said with a hidden laughter.

Caleb raised his eyebrow.

"Are you planning to add Drake and Aldarn?" He said incredulously. "I don't think that they will be happy to see you."

Will sighed.

"I know. I know. They think I'm like a second Phobos." She echoed, making Caleb growl softly.

How dared they think that Will was anything like that lowlife Prince? She was better than him and she deserved to rule after everything her so-called friends had pulled her through.

"But they can be altered Caleb." Will continued. "And they will not be the only ones who will join us to Kandrakar."

Caleb raised his eyebrow again. Who was Will planning to add to her personal army?

"What do you mean?" He asked.

Will turned to him and looked him in the eyes. Caleb felt himself getting lost in the dark pools of chocolate which were almost brimming with power, gently seducing him.

"Love is a strange thing, Caleb." She said, her eyes twinkling. "It can make a man, or break one."

Caleb grinned as he slowly took her chin and lifted it gently. He still had no clue who she was implying, but he knew she wanted him to kiss her. And he would oblige.

**...**

"Please! You need to listen to us!" Eric pleaded.

It was hopeless as the bodyguards of the mayor threw Nigel and him out of the building. He hit the ground hard and groaned in pain. This was the third time today he was thrown on the streets. The first time was at the police station, where he'd tried to warn them after Nigel's failed attempt. The second time was at Will's apartment, where Dean Collins kicked him out after he'd been telling them the truth about Will. And now he was thrown out of the mayor's office for warning him about a potential attack from Will.

Not that he was very surprised. Who would believe two teenage boys about magic anyway? Not to mention the rage Susan Vandom went into after telling her about her evil daughter. In the beginning she seemed to have forgotten about her daughter, until Nigel showed her a picture of Will and Taranee. She then got a headache while Eric had tried to tell her about what had happened to Will. The moment Susan Vandom fell into a rage, Eric had to stop himself from shrieking in fear. For a second he saw Will in her mother. During his little panic, Dean Collins had grabbed him by his collar and threw him out. Nigel quickly followed and the two of them had been reliving memories of yesterday afterwards.

Eric sighed as he looked at the grey skies above him. Every time the wind blew, he could hear Hay Lin's screams and he knew that Nigel wasn't any better off. He was getting tired of it. Tired of trying to warn people who did not believe him. Tired of the visions that made him hurl and tired of his aching heart. He just wanted to rest. To have his mind in control once more.

The two of them walked through the streets, slowly heading toward downtown Heatherfield.

"We're sad, aren't we?" Nigel asked suddenly.

Eric looked confused at him but Nigel pointed at something on the other side of the street. Eric looked over and saw a small group of teenagers robbing an old lady. He didn't wonder why Nigel didn't run at them, but took off after them. But before he could actually say something, he saw how the group of teenagers turned to him. Eric noticed that he was slightly bigger than them, but they were with seven. He didn't look at the odds and started to fight his way to the one holding the purse, when the boys jumped him and started to kick him. He could hear Nigel screaming and the boys laughing. Soon he lay on the cold ground, snow lightly falling on his face. The old woman had disappeared and the boys had been gloating, taking his wallet and walked away. He slowly got up and rubbed his head. He was sure that he would have a black eye and he could feel warm blood running past his lips. He looked with his good eye at Nigel and saw that his buddy had been violated as well.

Eric groaned in annoyance as not only another vision of Hay Lin flashed by, but also a new stab of pain went through him as he tried to sit against the wall of a nearby building.

"What just happened?" He asked, though he knew the answer.

"The world." Nigel answered bitterly. "Don't you see it man? The world is rotten and we are too weak to do something. Our girlfriends left us because of that. We were beaten by some punks and no one believes us while we're being driven mad by visions. And that's what we were trying to save."

Eric growled annoyed, but he knew Nigel was right. The old woman they had tried to help, could have called the cops, but she'd run instead. They were too weak to stop a couple of runts from pick-pocketing an old lady and they were abandoned by people they loved. And to top it off they kept having these recurring visions of death, which only made him hate himself more. If he'd been stronger, he could have stopped it.

"Why are we so weak?" He growled. "So weak that we've fallen for the tricks of our girlfriends."

He saw Nigel looking confused at him, before Nigel started to scowl as well.

"They were pretty much trained in lying." He said bitterly.

There was a silence between them, in which Nigel heaved himself against the same wall as Eric. Snow fell down slowly and created a thin blanket over them. Eric then heard Nigel laugh softly.

"You know what the most ironic part of all this is?" He said, his tone still bitter.

Eric looked up at the sky, his mind not working properly for him to figure out what Nigel meant.

"What?"

"The only one who didn't lie to us was Will…"

Eric stopped staring at the falling snow and looked surprised at Nigel. Nigel scowled and was looking at his feet, but Eric realized he was right. Will hadn't been lying to them, only to the girls, but that was to get even. She had been honest with them the whole time. And perhaps…

"Hey…" Eric said softly, knowing that what he was proposing would be insane. "Do you think her offer still stands?"

Nigel looked surprised at him, but his eyes widened in realization.

"Are..Are you… No…" He stammered. "You aren't thinking of asking _her_ for help? Why would she help us? She damned us, remember?"

Eric sighed, his lips twisting in a strange smirk.

"Maybe she was just helping us? Helping us see what kind of world we live in?" He said.

His heart started to thump violently, only this time he wasn't scared while thinking of Will. Instead he felt excitement. Will had shown them in what kind of rotten world they were living in and he could simply leave that world by joining her. Not only would he leave everything that ever reminded him of his weakness, but perhaps Will would also help him get rid of his nightmares.

Eric crawled up and looked at Nigel, his lips still forming his crazy grin.

"Think of it Nigel." He said, his voice betraying his excitement. "We leave this place. We'll become stronger. And we'll forget them."

Nigel looked scared at him, but he didn't understand why. Why would he be scared?

"Them?" Nigel said hoarsely.

"Taranee. Hay Lin." Eric replied slightly angered. "Do you want to remind them? Do you want to remember how they lied to us? How they got killed over their mistakes and how they left us to die? They nearly took us with them into their graves, dude!"

Nigel got up as well, but his face was slightly red and he looked almost enraged at Eric.

"How can you?" He hissed. "Are you trying to tell me that you never loved Hay Lin?"

Eric felt his temper rise and growled at Nigel.

"How dare you! I loved her with all my heart, but I finally see that she did not love me! She used me!" He hissed back.

Nigel grabbed him by his collar and pulled him closer. Eric didn't wince back and he kept glaring at Nigel, now getting a better look at his bloody lip and cut past his eye.

"And you are just willing to go to the murderer of your girlfriend? Dude, can't you remember the god times you had with her?" Nigel said, trying to change Eric's mind.

At this Eric stopped struggling against Nigel's grip and he let his head touch Nigel's. Tears started to fall uncontrollably past his cheeks.

"Er…Eric?" Nigel said surprised.

"C-can…Can you remember happy times?" Eric asked softly, his voice broken. "Because every time I try I get interrupted by a vision of yesterday or just with the thoughts that perhaps she didn't love me and that she was pretty much toying with me. I don't want to remember them anymore, Nige. I just can't."

Eric felt how Nigel pulled away from him and how he released him. Eric saw how tears fell down Nigel's face as well. Nigel looked down and didn't meet his gaze. Eric breathed heavily and waited for Nigel to react, to say something.

"D…Do you really think she helps us?" Nigel said softly and unsure.

Eric swallowed softly. He wasn't sure. Heck! Will could also just kill them. They were nothing to her. But he had to hope for the best.

"I hope so." He replied softly.

A silence ruled between the two of them, in which they heard the sounds of the cars passing by the alley they were standing. A lone dog barked in the distance and the snow kept falling.

"Let's do it." Nigel said softly, as if he was still scared of what could happen.

Eric wasn't scared, or at least he wasn't as scared as he had been. He was more afraid of his bed and the memories of Hay Lin than he was of Will. There was just one problem. How could they contact her?

"Any idea how?" He asked Nigel, who only shrugged.

"Dunno. She said we should call her…But I don't think that our cell phones will reach beyond dimensions, do you?" Nigel replied.

Eric felt how his heart fell and how it started to thump again in fear. He didn't want to return home. He didn't want to pass places that could remind him of Hay Lin. He just wanted to be free.

A memory of Hay Lin, telling him how she loved her freedom, popped up in his mind, followed by the memory of the horrible hunt and how her freedom was taken away. He screamed frustrated and fell on his knees. He felt how Nigel placed his hand on his shoulder.

"Will?" Eric yelled through the empty alley. "Will? We need your help!"

Eric knew it had worked, even before she spoke. The unnatural cold, which added to the winter cold, betrayed her presence. He did not know if she'd been here longer or if she'd just arrived. But he knew she would help.

"You called?" Will asked, standing right behind him and Nigel.

Eric felt how Nigel feared back but he stood up and turned around. Will was standing there, just like he remembered, with her three wings spread to look menacing. Her eyes were focusing on him and her face wore a thoughtful expression.

"I…" Eric said, but he didn't continue. Was he having second thought?

"We want your help." Nigel finished and Eric looked at him.

Nigel was looking braver than Eric had given him credit for, but then again. He was suffering from the same horrors as Eric.

Will slowly nodded and opened a strange sort of slash next to her.

"Well then, let's get to business." She said, motioning them to go through the slash.

Nigel nearly dived into it, but Eric stood still, looking at the blue-ish slash. He could see many stars and planets from his point of view, but when he took a step closer he saw how those stars melted together and created a dark room. He was standing before it, wanting to step through it. If he did so, he would end his life. He would start a new one and hopefully, one without so many pain and torture.

"Doubting?"

Eric blinked a couple of times while pulling himself out of his train of thoughts. He looked at Will and saw her annoyed look at him. He swallowed softly but he couldn't help but to grin. That look made him think of Will before this whole fiasco.

"Never." He said as he stepped through the fold.

**…**

Luba sighed in annoyance. She looked over the nine beds, which now held the nine Guardians of Kandrakar. All were wearing the same outfit as they had when they were Guardians, but Luba still believed that at least five of them did not deserve those powers.

"Luba, I know you're troubled, but we need to focus on what may come."

Luba turned around and saw Tibor standing behind her. She snarled softly before bowing her head.

"You are right. I may not like this, but we have to stop _her_ before we can punish _them_." She replied.

"Life never gives you the easiest way, does it?" Tibor said with a sigh.

Luba looked back at the nine Guardians. She felt how she snarled again and sighed in annoyance.

"No. No it doesn't." She said.

_**Voila! Ending! Of this chapter, that is. You know, I never wrote so many characters OOC. I believe the only ones I managed to keep a bit in character would be Angelo… (I think), Nigel and Yan Lin… And maybe a bit Nerissa.**_

_**But you people know what this means, right? All hell is about to break loose in Kandrakar. Will has no clue about the 'new' Guardians while no one on Kandrakar knows about Will's new addition to her personal army. Tell me, and be honest. Did you see this coming? I think not.**_

_**Review and look out for a new chapter!**_

_**BTW. I did finish it before Christmas, didn't I? xD**_


	17. Chapter 16 Calm before the storm

**Chapter 16 Calm before the storm**

The sound of an opening door slowly awakened Eric from his slumber. He'd been sleeping peacefully ever since yesterday and he was very grateful for it. He groaned softly as the light of the sun fell on his face.

He turned once more in his bed, trying to shield himself from the sun's rays. He was glad he'd chosen for Will's side. He was rested, had no problems and above all, he stopped thinking of Hay Lin. He grinned at his uneasiness when he'd first came here, voluntarily.

_Flashback_

As Eric stepped through the rip in space, he found himself standing behind Nigel, in the dreaded throne room. Eric involuntarily noticed that the room had been cleaned and he couldn't stop wondering if the ash in the fire pots were also the ashes of the Cooks. A strange sound made him look around and saw Will closing the rip, while looking calculatingly at the two of them. Her smirk was gone and her eyes were darker than he'd remembered. As she walked past him, Eric noticed that she seemed to walk a bit troublesome. Was she weakened from yesterday?

"Now, you two want my help?"

Will was now sitting on her throne, looking down on the two of them. Eric wasn't sure if he could speak. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to ask for Will's help. She was still…Evil. Right?

"Yes?" Eric muttered.

"Yes?" Will echoed, sounding slightly irritated. "I have you know, Eric, that I don't react to your call of help for my own fun."

Eric bowed his head, feeling increasingly guilty and scared as Will spoke. He looked aside and saw Nigel doing the same, but looking slightly more sure of himself.

"We want you to rid us of the curse you placed on us." He heard Nigel say.

Nigel's voice was slightly wavering and Eric dared to look up. Will looked down on them and he could see how a smile formed on her lips.

"Curse? What curse?" Will said, her echo teasing them.

Eric felt how his anger rose, but his fear was still greater. He swallowed and looked down again when he noticed how Will's dark eyes pinpointed him.

"The..The nightmares about Hay Lin and Taranee." He stuttered. "That's y..Your curse, right?"

He heard Will snicker for a moment.

"I wish I could take credit for your torturing after you left my domain, but I'm afraid this is your own brain which is toying with you." Will said calmly.

Eric's heart stopped for a second. If the images weren't Will's fault to begin with, then what could he do now?

"C…Can you help us to get rid of the visions?" Eric said hesitantly.

A silence fell in the room, yet Eric didn't look up. He could hear his own heart pumping like mad and he had difficulty with refraining himself from shaking.

"I can help you." Will said, but her voice betrayed that she wasn't finished.

"But?" Eric said while looking up, almost immediately after Will was finished talking.

He saw Will's glare and immediately looked down to the ground. A new silence ruled and Eric felt how cold hands of air stroke past him, which made him shiver in fear and cold.

"But," Will said, slightly annoyed. "it will take some sacrifices from your side as well. Sacrifices you must be willing to make."

Eric looked up at Will, surprised that she was asking them to sacrifice rather than demand them to. He looked confused at Nigel and he saw how his friend looked a little scared.

"Sa…Sacrifices?" Nigel asked scared.

Will grinned at them.

"Yes, sacrifices." She said. "But if you don't want to make them, fine by me."

Eric felt doubt clouding his judgment, but he tried to shake it awful feeling away.

"Wh…What kind of sacrifices?" Eric asked scared.

"Well." Will drawled. "These images are linked with your memories of Taranee and Hay Lin. With your _bond_. I can sever that bond but that will mean you will lose your most fond memories of them. In other words, you will lose all your feelings for them."

Eric's eyes widened in shock. He was supposed to forget about his feelings for Hay Lin? True, he had been blaming her for every bad thing that had happened to him ever since she'd exposed her secret to him, but still. He liked the more cozier and cuter moments he had had with Hay Lin.

He looked at Nigel, who seemed to be at a loss as well. How were they supposed to choose? To choose between his loving memories or a sane mind.

"Decisions, decisions, decisions." Will said softly. "Choosing between a murderer and a liar. Choosing between, perhaps, fake feelings and clarity."

A new silence filled the room, this one being filled with tension. Eric kept repeating his memories of Hay Lin, hoping that those would help him make a decision, but every time a memory of Hay Lin popped up, it got replaced by her corpse. The longer he thought about it, the longer pain started to fill him.

"I… I accept the terms." He heard.

He wasn't the only one who spoke that sentence. Eric looked surprised at Nigel, who looked surprised in return. So he wasn't stupid for doing so?

He turned to Will to see her grinning at them.

"Very well." She said as her hands started to glow. "Let's make some adjustments."

Eric stepped backwards when a white beam made contact with his head. He slowly felt how the loving feelings he had for Hay Lin started to disappear, but he felt his anger for her rise. Now that his love was no longer blinding him, Eric could see the betrayal much more clearly and it pained him even more to think that he ever loved her in the first place.

A slight fog got caught in his head and Eric slowly fell to the ground.

As he woke up he could see the ceiling of the throne room and he heard Nigel groan next to him. Eric crawled up and saw Will still sitting in her throne, looking dully at him. Nigel quickly followed his example and both of them were looking at Will.

"Happy now?" Will drawled.

Eric blinked a couple of times, but there were no horrifying scenes. He tried to think of the happier moments with Hay Lin, but he didn't feel anything. There were no horrid scenes unless he specifically thought of them.

Yet there was something that made him feel worse. The anger he had for his former girlfriend made him feel restless and annoyed. Annoyed that he could not punish her in some way for what she'd done. In fact, every time he thought of her death, he had to smile. Just because she got what she deserved.

"No." Eric said, making Will raise an eyebrow.

"No?"

Will's voice echoed dangerously through the room and Eric stepped back when Will got up from her throne. Her wings spread out menacingly and her dark aura flared up.

"I gave you what you asked from me." Will said coldly. "You dare to accuse me of betrayal?"

Eric stepped back but didn't dare to look at Will. Instead he looked at the ground.

"No… No!" He stammered. "Never! But… How can I feel happy? She betrayed me too, Will! I hate her!"

"Yeah!" Nigel added. "Now that our love for them is gone, we can see what they've done. What they've truly done. And I hate myself for falling in love with someone like that."

"And that concerns me how?" Will questioned, her eyes sparkling.

Eric gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He did not want to return to Earth and he wanted to have some sort of revenge on Hay Lin, even if she was already dead.

"I… I…" Eric stammered, finding himself at a loss of words. "I want to join you."

The moment those words had left his mouth he felt the urge to kill himself. Why would Will take him in? He could not fight and he doubted that she needed any help with homework. Next to the fact that he was way too scared to walk into any battle.

To his surprise, Will smiled. Her eyes turned to Nigel and Eric heard him gulp.

"And you? Feeling brave?" She asked, making Eric believe he'd just wished to be killed.

Eric looked at Nigel, who seemed to be doubting a lot. Eric silently wished that Nigel would choose to serve Will as well, because else he would stand no chance. He would be alone or killed and he didn't fancy either option.

"Y-Yes." Nigel stammered. "I…I want to join you as well."

Eric stood still as Will snapped her fingers. The doors behind him flung open and Eric turned around. His heart stood still as Caleb entered the room. His dark green eyes fell on him and Eric winced when he saw Caleb grab for his sword.

"I don't think that will be necessary, Caleb." Will's cold voice commanded, making Caleb stop his attempt to attack Eric or Nigel.

Eric watched silently how Caleb immediately looked past him and turned to Will, bowing slightly.

"I presume you knew I was waiting outside the room?" He asked.

Will smiled at him and slowly descended her throne.

"Of course. You are quite predictable." She said to him.

Eric shivered. Those two looked so…normal. If they weren't clad in scary armor he would never have thought that Will and Caleb were evil. But now that he thought about it, were they? They were more the victims of a higher evil.

"Why did you call me?" Caleb asked suddenly.

Eric watched how Will started to circle both him and Nigel and he stopped himself from backing away when Will's hand reached out for him. He could, however, not stop himself from closing his eyes when her hand touched his cheek. He shivered slightly under her touch and he was sure he could feel magic seeping into him. Once he dared to open his eyes again, long after Will had stopped caressing his cheek, he saw how Will stepped away from Nigel, whose eyes were closed as well.

He saw how lightning jumped off him and right at Caleb, who looked surprised. To Eric's amazement, the lightning didn't hurt. Instead he suddenly felt how knowledge entered his mind. He also felt his muscles bulge slightly and he looked surprised at himself, as he noticed that his clothes had changed for a black armor. A sword hang at his hip and a shield hang on his back. He looked surprised at Nigel, who seemed to be wearing a similar armor, only he had a big broad sword on his back and some knives at his belt. Eric also noticed that the two of them were wearing the same sign as Caleb wore, which Eric presumed to be Will's personal sign.

Next to the physical change, Eric also felt how his fear started to diminish. Sure he was still scared of Will, but a lot less than before. Eric grinned at Nigel, who wore the same smirk.

"Tomorrow we'll attack Kandrakar."

Eric's head snapped to Will when she spoke and somewhere in his mind he could recall Hay Lin telling him about Kandrakar. Though he wanted to ask why, he refrained himself. A servant never asked his superiors.

"I want you to be ready." Will said calmly.

Eric looked at Will as the latter walked at him. She drew her sword quicker than he could blink and Eric felt the how the sword touched his shoulder. He looked almost scared at Will but her eyes only commanded him to bow, kneel on one knee. Eric obeyed the unspoken command and he felt how Will touched both his shoulders.

"Rise, Sir Eric." She said.

Eric was sure she was being sarcastic but he couldn't help but feel some pride when she said it. He did not leave his stance, not even after Nigel was knighted. He heard how Will sheathed her sword again and he felt how several feathers of her wings touched his cheek as she turned to Caleb.

"Caleb, take these two with you and check if they are prepared for tomorrow. If not, return to me." She said coldly. "Nothing is allowed to go wrong."

"Of course." Caleb said, his voice equally cold.

_End Flashback_

Eric winced in his bed as he remembered the training he and Nigel went through so that Caleb could see if they were ready. Eric had never been that strong or agile in his whole life, not to mention the boost in stamina, but he was glad he had it.

After their training, Elyon healed him. After his dinner he went straight to bed, but there he met Lisa. He had met her before, when he'd been captured by Will. She'd been nice to him and she even managed to give them more food when needed. She was caring and her smile was nice. And Eric had to admit. When he was near Lisa, he felt himself again. How he was before he ever moved to Heatherfield. Now, when he'd been near Will or any other member of the castle, he was a lot grumpier than before and he smirked when he heard the screams of the rebels who were tortured, but with her, he could really smile. Perhaps, when the conquest for Kandrakar was over, he could create a future with her. At least she seemed to be faithful and trustworthy.

"Sir Eric."

Eric felt a how a smile formed on his lips as he turned in his bed, looking right at Lisa who was trying to wake him. Lisa jumped back a little and blushed deeply.

"Good morning." Eric said calmly, his heart beating a bit.

Lisa nodded embarrassed and smiled back at him.

"Good morning, Sir." She said. "Mistress Will has sent me. She wants you at the dining room in ten minutes."

Eric sighed. So she was planning to go today. He'd thought she was either joking or scaring him, but it seemed she spoke the truth. He nodded at Lisa, who quickly left the room. Eric snickered a bit before he got out himself. He quickly washed himself and dressed himself in the armor Will had given him. His shield and sword were at the armory, which he would collect before going to the dining room. He may trust Will, but Eric felt extremely wary of Caleb and Cedric.

After a short walk to the armory he went to the dining room. There he found that everyone was already seated, except for him of course. Eric nodded as a greeting and took his seat next to Nigel. His eyes then settled on the only two men he had not seen before. One had a green skin tone and strange rock like lumps on his head while the other man seemed to be human. He had long blond hair and a goatee. Both were clad in a similar armor as himself, only their sign was different. It looked like a strange diamond shaped eye. The color of the symbol was green.

"Boy, it is impolite to stare" Cedric hissed at him and Eric quickly looked at his plate. Now he could feel how the two men were looking at him. Further at the table both Will and Elyon snickered.

"Come on Cedric." Elyon said goodheartedly. "He has never seen a galhot before."

Eric looked back at the man he presumed to be this 'galhot'. The green man looked at him and Eric thought the man's eyes were a bit hazy. The green man nodded.

"Name's Aldarn." He said briskly. "And this is Drake."

He pointed at the man next to him. Drake nodded before continuing to eat. Eric nodded in acknowledgement before Will spoke.

"They are Elyon's knights." She said calmly.

Eric nodded in understanding. So the strange eye must be Elyon's symbol. He then turned to Aldarn, who kept looking at him.

"I'm Eric." He said.

"Nigel." Was all Nigel had to say before he took another bite out of his breakfast.

Aldarn nodded as well and continued with his own breakfast. Eric quickly followed and a silence dawned in the room. A loaded silence. Eric didn't dare to say a word and often looked at the others at the table. Breakfast was nearly finished when Will finally broke the silence.

"Go back to your chambers." She said. "Take a rest of an hour and then return. Prepare for battle. We march at noon."

…

Angelo looked darkly over the endless skies of Kandrakar. He still could not believe that all of this had happened. From Irma, Taranee, Cornelia and Hay Lin betraying Will to Will ruling a planet like an evil dictator. But what was hurting him the most, was the fact that he'd lost Will before he had a chance to pull her back. If Caleb hadn't been there, he could have managed to stop Will from taking revenge. Or perhaps not this bloody. A more legal way perhaps.

Angelo clenched his fists. Caleb had killed him and just with a cheap trick. If he had the chance he would battle the guy and knock him through infinity.

"Angelo?"

Angelo turned around and immediately grabbed for his sword, just in case Will was already attacking. But instead he saw Hay Lin standing behind him. She was still wearing her Guardian outfit and she looked awkwardly at him. Angelo relaxed a bit and let go of his sword.

"Hay Lin." He said calmly, but he could still note his annoyance for Hay Lin in his voice.

He might have accepted her apology, a little part of him was still blaming her for the mess they were in. He turned again to the endless clouds, hoping that Hay Lin would leave.

But instead, Hay Lin went to stand next to him. She placed her hands on the balcony and sighed troubled. Angelo didn't look at her and remained staring into the nothingness.

"Why are you here?" He asked, not trying to sound briskly.

Hay Lin just sighed again and shook her head.

"I just wanted to clear my head a little." She said. "But when I saw you standing here and I thought you could use some company."

Angelo smiled weakly at Hay Lin. So she had returned to the nice person she was supposed to be, or at least according to the stories he'd read from Will's e-mails.

"Thanks." He said. "I think I can use some."

Hay Lin tried to flash him a smile, but it quickly faltered as she started to hug herself.

"Is something wrong, Hay Lin?" Angelo asked concerned.

Hay Lin shook her head slowly but Angelo could see she was lying. The tears, which were forming in her eyes, were betraying her. But Angelo didn't have to probe any further.

"I just hate myself, that's all." She said softly. "That and I'm scared of what is coming."

Angelo sighed softly and looked a little helpless at Hay Lin. Hay Lin just kept on hugging herself and Angelo shook his head.

"Why do you hate yourself?" He asked, even though the answer would be rather obvious.

"Because of the same reason you hate me." She replied softly. "I betrayed my friends, I disgraced the name of the Guardians and because I was too weak to stop any of this."

Now that Angelo heard Hay Lin speak of it, he felt kind of bad as well. Hay Lin not only showed remorse for what she'd done, but he also realized he was blaming her for things she had no control off. It wasn't her fault alone that Will fell into darkness.

"Hey…" He said, but Hay Lin was still looking the other way.

Angelo grabbed her shoulders and made her look at him. Her eyes became big and she looked scared at him, but he tried to smile encouragingly at her.

"Listen to me Hay Lin." He said sternly. "It's true that you also made the mistake of betraying Will, but at least you regretted it right away. You are not a bad person, just misguided. And you're not weak. Heck! At least you dared to tell us why you didn't stand up for Will! At least you dared to show remorse in front of the Kandrakarian Council and you were one of the first to accept your powers to fight Will again! If anything, you are not weak. And when you'll face Will again, remember just one thing. You're not alone."

Hay Lin flashed him a smile and he grinned in return.

"Thanks Angelo." She said softly.

Angelo then saw how her eyes went to his sword and his grin became even bigger. Hay Lin was planning to change the subject and he wouldn't mind.

"Wow!" Hay Lin said. "How did you get that sword?"

Angelo glowed a little with pride as he thought back to how he got his sword.

"I trained with Luba after I died." He said. "And she gave me this as a reward. It's a sword of one of the Kandrakarian knights."

"Kandrakarian knights?" Hay Lin repeated.

Angelo nodded.

"Yeah. During the reign of the previous Oracle, Kandrakar was constantly under attack and even the Guardians couldn't handle all the attacks. So the Oracle decided to create a small legion of well-trained warriors, each handling a sword which was imbued with an element." He explained.

"So…You are like a new generation of those knights, right?" Hay Lin asked.

Angelo had to grin. He hadn't realized it, but he was indeed a new generation.

"Now that you mention it." He said. "Thanks."

"So what kind of element does your sword have?" Hay Lin asked curious.

"Earth." Angelo answered. "I guess it's because I'm Kadma's grandson or something like that."

"Cool." Hay Lin replied. "So that means you can do the same things as your grandma and Corny?"

Angelo shook his head.

"No. I have limited telekinesis and I can coat myself in stone like an armor, but that's all."

A new silence fell and Angelo looked sideways at Hay Lin. She had her eyes closed and an unnoticeable wind made her hair float. She looked kind of pretty.

"Angelo… Can I ask you something?" Hay Lin suddenly asked.

She turned to him and he raised an eyebrow.

"You just did, remember?" He said with a grin.

Hay Lin hit him playfully on his shoulder.

"Another question I mean." She said, sticking out her tongue.

Angelo nodded but he became wary when Hay Lin's face turned serious.

"Angelo…How did you die?" She asked, almost scared.

Angelo's face became dark and he turned his gaze back on the clouds.

"I'm sorry if I insulted you!" Hay Lin said quickly, but Angelo shook his head.

"It's not that." He said. "It's just… I hate him for what he did."

"Your murderer?" Hay Lin asked.

Angelo nodded briskly.

"He was there, with Will…And he just stabbed me. Without a warning. Just a cheap trick. And he thinks he can save her… He only helps her fall into darkness!" He raged.

"Who?" Hay Lin asked concerned.

"Caleb." Angelo answered annoyed.

He heard Hay Lin gasp and Angelo looked at her again. Tears were forming in her eyes and she was looking down.

"Hay Lin?" Angelo asked carefully.

Hay Lin shook her head and wiped her tears away. She then looked at Angelo.

"I'm sorry. It's just… I had always thought of him as a brother, you know? And when I saw him so angry…I… I…"

She stopped talking as new tears made their way up and she started sobbing. Angelo quickly placed an arm around her and tried to calm her down.

"Ssh." He said. "It's not your fault."

"It is!" Hay Lin sobbed loudly. "If I had rebelled against Cornelia and Irma, Will wouldn't have gone dark and Caleb wouldn't have followed her!"

Angelo took Hay Lin's chin and made her look at him. He frowned sternly at her which made her stop her sobbing.

"Now listen. I will not tell you that you are not the cause of Will's darkness." He said, making Hay Lin look even sadder than before. "But, you are _not_ the cause of Caleb's darkness. He was so stupid to fall into it himself, just because his girlfriend cheated on him. He is just an idiot and believe me when I tell you that you are better without him as your brother."

Hay Lin smiled weakly at him and hugged him.

"And I will kick his ass if I ever see him again." Angelo growled softly into her ear.

Hay Lin broke the hug and her eyes widened slightly. She looked concerned at Angelo while the latter only raised an eyebrow.

"What?" He asked.

"Angelo, stop it." Hay Lin said softly.

Angelo raised his eyebrow.

"What do you mean? Stop with what?" He asked confused.

Hay Lin grabbed his hand and squeezed it slightly.

"Angelo, don't take revenge on Caleb. Don't do it." She said softly.

Angelo felt his anger rise and pulled his hand back. He looked angered at Hay Lin, who only looked concerned at him.

"Don't tell me what to do, Hay Lin." He said darkly. "Caleb used a cheap trick and only pushed Will further into darkness. That's not something I'm going to forgive him for."

Hay Lin sighed annoyed.

"I don't care if you forgive him or not! Just don't try to take revenge! That's just how Will started! Or do you want to fall into the darkness as well?" She berated him.

Angelo's eyes widened slightly but then he turned his gaze to infinity. He did not want to admit that Hay Lin was right. He deserved to at least kick Caleb's ass into infinity. He owed him that much.

"Angelo?" Hay Lin questioned concerned.

Angelo turned to Hay Lin and flashed her a fake smile.

"Don't worry Hay." He lied. "I won't try to take my revenge."

Hay Lin smiled sadly at him.

"I hope you'll realize I'm right just in time." She said sadly. "Cause you know, I can feel it when someone lies."

With that she gave him a peck on his cheek and walked away. Angelo stared incredulously at her and slowly went to touch his cheek. Did she just….

"Alarm! A fold just opened in front of the fortress!"

Angelo snapped to full alert and grabbed his sword. He had to be there before Will arrived. The fight was about to begin.

…

Will stood right next the fold. She flexed her fingers, feeling slightly annoyed. She was still not at full power. The Veil had really done a number on her power. She gritted her teeth when her servants entered. Eric and Nigel both held their weapons at the ready while Caleb had his sword in his sheath. Cedric and Miranda both wore their usual clothes, but that was more because armor didn't matter if they would shift their shape. Elyon also wore her regal gowns and both Drake and Aldarn were also at the ready with their weapons. Will smiled as she looked at her own little army. Perhaps she should take the guards with her as well? No, they would either scare away from the magic users or they would fail miserably and she couldn't use failure, not now.

"I hope everyone is ready." She said, a smirk playing on her lips.

The lot nodded and Cedric already moved for the fold when Will stopped him.

"Not. So. Fast." She said, stopping Cedric from entering Kandrakar.

"What?" He spat annoyed. "You said it yourself. The quicker this is over with, the better."

Will smirked at Cedric's enthusiasm.

"I do appreciate your enthusiasm, but I also like to see if there is anything nasty I should worry about." She said.

"And?" Miranda asked curiously.

"And… If we all walk into Kandrakar while there is a trap, we will all be damned. But if just two of us enter and if the rest comes…I don't know, ten minutes later, then the trap will not work and we can simply destroy the place." Will explained patiently.

"And the ones going are?" Elyon asked skeptically.

"Caleb and myself." Will answered calmly.

"What! No, Will. You will not go as a scout! Let Eric or Nigel accompany me." Caleb said.

Will grinned at him but she shook her head.

"Oh no. They expect me." She said maliciously. "And who am I to disrespect their wishes?"

Caleb looked worried at Will. Cedric nor Miranda seemed to be a full supporter of the plan and Elyon frowned a bit.

"Then why not take me?" She asked. "I mean, I can open an extra fold in case you get knocked out and they close this one."

Will shook her head, even if Elyon's idea was a good one.

"That's why you stay here." She said. "If the fold closes, immediately open a new one to Kandrakar. Because if they would knock me down, they could also knock you down before you opened the fold back to Meridian. This way they cannot stop you from entering Kandrakar."

She finished her sentence forcefully, making clear that she would not accept another interruption.

She looked at the faces of her servants, yet none spoke up. They all nodded and some murmured, but that was all. She grinned and looked at Caleb. He was still looking as if he wanted to argue, but she only signaled him to go through the fold and he obliged. Just before she would step into the fold she turned to the others.

"Remember, wait ten minutes and then follow us." She said before walking through the fold herself.

The first things she saw, was the bright white light from her surroundings. Once she blinked the sudden light away, she had a clear view on the fortress which was laying in the distance. She looked surprised down to see that she was capable of walking on top of the clouds. She saw Caleb looking at her and she nodded grimly.

Together they walked to the fortress, both keeping their eyes out for traps and ambushes, but nothing happened. It was silent and peaceful until they arrived at the doorway. Because standing on top of the stairs and in front of the door was someone they had not expected to see. Will's heart started beating furiously and her mind reeled back. It should be impossible. He had no connections to Kandrakar, right? He shouldn't have one.

"An…Angelo?" She said incredulously.

…

She was looking from the right side of the door. Luba had been against it, sending the boy out alone to greet the fallen Guardian, but she'd never thought it would work so well. The Keeper had displayed shock on seeing the boy and her dark aura had strongly diminished. What kind of power did this boy hold over the Keeper?

"Hey Will." Angelo said, but Luba heard the coldness in the boy's voice.

"What are you doing here?" The rebel boy growled.

Angelo seemed to ignore the impatient brat and Luba looked surprised at how he and the Keeper kept staring at each other. Neither moved much and Luba watched breathlessly how the event continued.

"So you finally came here?" Angelo asked calmly.

The Keeper just nodded and looked a little insecure at him.

"Wh…Why are you here?" She asked, her voice still holding the echo, but sounding a lot less secure.

Angelo's face darkened slightly.

"I came here after your lackey killed me." He said darkly. "Seeing that I'm the grandson of Kadma, I'm allowed to go to Kandrakar."

"I'm not her lackey!" The rebel boy growled, but the Keeper silenced him.

"So, you are Guardian related." She said softly.

Angelo nodded slowly. He then looked concerned at the Keeper.

"Will, this isn't you." He said almost lovingly. "I know you want revenge, but don't you think you went far enough? Innocents have died Will. The Will I remember always tried to save people, not kill them for fun."

The Keeper snarled slightly and the rebel boy even drew his sword, yet Angelo did not move. He just continued his glare wars with the Keeper.

"You lowlife." The rebel boy growled. "Don't you dare try to talk her out of this."

Angelo again ignored the boy and when the rebel tried to attack, the Keeper spread her wings, blocking him from moving forwards.

"But Will…"

It seemed that both the Keeper as well as Angelo were ignoring the rebel boy. And both kept staring at each other.

"You don't understand what has happened to me, Angelo." The Keeper said, her voice wavering. "You would have changed as well."

Angelo shook his head and kept staring at the Keeper.

"I wouldn't." He said. "Because I would have gone to you, my best friend. I would have gone to my family, who would help me. I would have gone to the former generation."

The Keeper was gritting her teeth, but to Luba's amazement, she saw the dark aura diminishing. It was flickering, as if some light inside of her was trying to extinguish it. Luba had never seen such a strange event. She'd never thought that the flame of darkness could be extinguished when it was already that big. But this boy was extinguishing the Keeper's darkness slowly but surely.

Luba saw how the rebel boy seemed to be at a lost. He looked at the Keeper and Luba had the feeling that he knew that his leader was being stopped.

"Did you know I still have your present?"

Luba looked confused at the Keeper. Her voice was soft and almost nice. Angelo smiled at her but his eyes were still serious.

"Thank you…I guess." He said calmly. "But why didn't you keep my wishes as well? To turn back to the Will I once knew?"

The Keeper shook her head slowly and took a step backward. The aura was trying to get back up, but with every attempt it made to flare up, it seemed to be extinguished further.

Luba felt how a smile graced her lips. If Angelo could manage to keep the Keeper distracted like this, then perhaps they didn't have to fight and the Oracle could finish his spell in peace. Then all of this would cease to happen.

The Keeper did not answer Angelo's question. They kept staring at each other and Luba was almost sure a tear was swelling up in the eyes of the Keeper. Luba did not know that Angelo could have such an impact on this girl. On this monster.

"Besides, I don't think you know the full story." Angelo suddenly said.

A new silence fell, but Luba felt that it was a lot more loaded than before. She also looked surprised at the rebel boy. She would have thought that the guy would have yelled something about Angelo being an idiot or something like that. Instead the Keeper snickered.

"Me not knowing the full story?" She said and Luba once again heard the dangerous tone in her voice. "Strange, hearing that from someone who hasn't been in the loop."

Angelo replied with a grin of his own, yet he didn't continue. Luba's eyes widened when she saw movement from the other side of the door. The side where the Guardians were standing. They couldn't…. They wouldn't….

Slowly but surely, the Guardians of Air and Fire appeared in the view of the Keeper. Luba saw how the aura flared up again, though it was still nothing compared with what it was when she arrived. Luba saw the surprised and snarling look of the rebel boy and the almost dead look from the Keeper. The two young Guardians shivered slightly but they kept on walking, until they were standing next to Angelo.

"So… Kandrakar allows traitors all of the sudden?" The Keeper's now merciless voice rang.

Both the Guardians winced a bit.

"And I see you have found a way to get your powers back. You should praise the one who is hiding your energies. I did not notice you." She continued, her eyes pinpointing the two Guardians.

"Will…" The Fire Guardian said slowly. "I…I am sorry. Really… I was a too big of a coward to stand against Irma and Cornelia."

"If…If I had known Taranee was thinking the same, I wouldn't have abandoned you." The Air Guardian squeaked.

Luba watched with growing anxiety how both the Keeper and the rebel boy stared at the Guardians. She could feel that things were going wrong, her intuition was saying so…But she wanted to believe in Angelo. He had already proved that he could delay her, perhaps he could manage to destroy the Keeper's lust for vengeance completely.

"Do you believe them?"

If Luba hadn't been concentrating, she would have missed the Keeper's question. The question had been soft but Luba could feel the hidden emotions in it. A lot of hope and light. Now if only Angelo answered correctly, then a whole battle would be avoided.

"Yes, I do." Angelo replied softly. "I've seen their regret and I really do believe them."

The Keeper grinned and Luba started to fear the worst. She already placed her hand on her own sword, already preparing for an attack.

"Do you know what those two did to me?" She said. "Do you know that, despite that their betrayal hurt me the most, I have been merciful on them?"

Both the Air and Fire Guardian swallowed scared and they glanced at each other. Luba kept a look on the aura of the Keeper, but it was still flickering, which only meant that there was no danger. Then why? Why did she feel such an ominous feeling?

"Because I still had a soft spot for them. The only two people who actually accepted me for who I was." The Keeper continued, but her voice was turning darker and darker.

"Will…" The Fire Guardian said, the regret clearly audible.

"Will… They didn't hurt you that much, did they?" Angelo asked carefully, but Luba immediately felt that that was a mistake.

The aura's flickering started to diminish and Luba already unsheathed her sword. This wasn't going to go well.

A silence followed, in which neither of the groups spoke a word, much less breathed. Until the rebel boy started to snicker.

"You call yourself her best friend." He said dangerously. "And still you prefer to believe those traitors over her. Do you realize how much pain those two have caused her?"

Angelo seemed to be startled by the accusation and stepped forward to try and undo the damage he'd done.

"No! That's not what I meant! But I trust them as much as I trust Will!" He said hastily.

The rebel boy smirked darkly at him and he unsheathed his sword again.

"You are going to die again, Dreads." He provoked.

Yet the rebel boy did not moved an inch. He just held his sword while his expression darkened when the two Guardians spoke up.

"Please Will. We really are sorry." The Fire Guardian said.

"Stop this madness." The Air Guardian pleaded. "I just want to go back to how it was."

"See Will?" Angelo said. "They want to trust you again. They want to be with you again. Heck, I want to be with you again. Let's stop this joke."

"There is just one problem, Angelo." The Keeper said, her voice ice cold once again. "I don't trust them. And I no longer trust you!"

Luba's heart skipped a beat when she saw the aura of the Keeper flare up like never before. The two Guardians as well as Angelo took a step back and even the rebel boy started to blink in surprise. The aura around the Keeper had even become visible to people without magic.

With a speed Luba barely followed, the Keeper jumped at Angelo. Angelo had barely the time to draw his sword to block the attack. The two were standing in a deadlock, but Luba could easily see that the Keeper could overpower Angelo in a second.

"You. Kandrakar. Everything will be finished!" The Keeper hissed furiously as the aura started to flare even more. "Attack!"

Luba looked past the Keeper, Angelo and the rebel boy to see that the reinforcements were coming through the fold. The fold had never closed! She gritted her teeth and fastened the grip on her sword. The battle had begun.

"Attack!" Luba yelled as she ran into the fray.

_**[A/N] Wow! Angelo nearly managed to get Will to the good side! He just had to slip with his words… And perhaps showing Hay Lin and Taranee wasn't such a good idea… Not the battle begins! Will versus Kandrakar! Who will win? Will the Oracle manage to finish the spell, or will Will discover it beforehand and stop him? Find out in the coming chapters! **_

_**And review!**_


	18. Chapter 17 Battle for the heart

**Chapter 17 Battle for the heart**

He was stupid, he agreed now that he was looking into her furious dark brown eyes. Angelo felt the strength she had placed in her sword and he felt how his own arms started to tremble under the pressure. He was sure Will's sword would cleave into him when he felt how someone pushed him away. Angelo fell onto the ground and looked surprised at the one who pushed him away.

Luba was now locking swords with Will, who was smiling insanely.

"You shall not harm that boy, you monster!" Luba yelled angered.

"Feeling like looking in the mirror?" Will retorted as the two of them broke up.

Angelo didn't have much time to concentrate on their fight when another voice caught his attention.

"Dreads!"

Angelo was in time to block the sword of Caleb, who was glaring at him. They pushed apart and Angelo readied his sword as he looked at the armored boy who was glowering at him. He felt how his anger rose and he nearly snarled at Caleb.

"How nice. Instead of having my best friend trying to kill me I have her lackey." He sneered.

Caleb growled at him, slashing once again while Angelo nicely dodged the attack.

"I'm not her lackey!" He growled angered as he parried a slash from Angelo.

"Really?" Angelo replied with a grin while blocking Caleb's attacks. "You do whatever Will tells you to. If she would say jump, you would ask how high. And you've got no real power either. Yeah, you're a lackey."

Caleb temporarily stopped his attacks in which Angelo saw his chance to attack. He slashed forcefully at Caleb, but the armor seemed to stop every blow if he managed to hit. It was as if he was fighting against diamond. It did not break. Caleb quickly snapped out of his stupor and started to counter. Angelo first blocked the attack, but with the strength Caleb put in his sword, Angelo quickly decided to dodge. Caleb's attacks were fierce and well placed and Angelo had to think of something to get Caleb to become sloppy.

"I have to ask." He suddenly said while dodging yet another attack. "Why kill me? I've done nothing wrong yet you went and killed me."

Caleb snarled at him when Angelo managed to parry an attack and counter with his own series of attacks.

"You were in the way." He growled while blocking.

"Of what?" Angelo growled.

"Will's revenge." Caleb retorted while pushing Angelo away.

Both fighters took a small break in which they glared at the other. Angelo growled softly.

"Are you nuts?" He questioned. "If anything, you should of been trying to turn her away from getting revenge! The more she wanted revenge, the more she turned to the darkness!"

Caleb charged at Angelo, while Angelo jumped at Caleb.

"You're nuts. When this is all over I will pull Will from the darkness. And no one else!" He growled.

Angelo looked into Caleb's eyes and he realized something, but it wasn't making his temper any better. He smirked at Caleb.

"You? You know nothing of Will. Cause if you did, you would know that the real Will Vandom would never do such things." He sneered.

"And you know her better?" Caleb growled.

"I know she loves swimming more than anything. That she is a whiz in science and hates math. That she is compassionate and that she loves the way how snow covers the city. She loves animals, especially frogs of which she collect anything related except for the animal itself. But I also see that it's your fault that she has fallen to darkness!" Angelo spat. "You could have gone for help, but instead you were egoistical."

Caleb snorted.

"You almost sound as if you could have helped her."

"Not just me. My family, Will's family the ex-Guardians. All of them could have helped. But instead you ruined it and now she's lost." Angelo snapped.

"LIAR!" Caleb snapped as he slashed hard at Angelo, making him fall on the steps of Kandrakar.

Caleb slowly walked at Angelo, who looked surprised yet angered at the guy. He placed his sword in the ground while Caleb raised his.

"When this is all over, it will be just me and her." Caleb hissed as he forced his sword down.

**...**

Caleb felt the rush of victory. When this toy boy was finished he could go and get a number on the Guardians who were still lurking around. He placed much strength in his sword yet instead of feeling how he cut through bones and flesh, he felt a strong resistance. He retracted his sword to see that Angelo was suddenly coated in the same marble stone as the fortress's steps.

He didn't even had the time to wonder how he'd done that when Angelo pushed up, his sword already clashing with Caleb's.

"I see what's going on here." Angelo said with a smirk Caleb so hated.

"What?" Caleb growled as they were still in a deadlock.

"You've got the hots for Will!" Angelo said while Caleb growled darkly. " Oh this is rich! Do you honestly think that Will would fall for you in the end? Is that the reason why you stick to her like a puppy? No wonder Cornelia dumped you!"

**...**

Angelo smirked even more as he saw how Caleb reddened. They pushed each other away once more and Caleb already rushed in, but Angelo could see he'd gotten sloppier. A lot.

"I'll kill you!" Caleb yelled angered.

Angelo easily parried the attack and saw an opening. He lunged at Caleb and managed to dent the armour.

"Been there done that!" Angelo said with a grin. "Don't you get it, man? Will just sees you as a toy she can play with until she's done with you! Don't you see that you killed all those innocents for nothing! Then again, like mother like son." He said with a smirk that made Caleb even madder!

Caleb slashed like a madman at Angelo, who easily dodged the attacks. As long as he didn't block them, Caleb had no chance. Angelo quickly glanced to Will who was still fighting with Luba. He truly hoped he was wrong in what he said about her.

**...**

She couldn't believe it. Hay Lin did not want to believe it. There he was, holding a shield and sword while brandishing Will's sign on both his shield as chest plate. What was he doing here and why was he fighting for Will?

"Eric." She whispered shocked as her fellow Guardians rushed past her.

Irma and Cornelia went to fight Elyon and Cedric while the former generation went to deal with Miranda, Drake and Aldarn. Yet she and Taranee were standing transfixed, not believing their eyes. Hay Lin felt a pang of pain when she made eye contact with him. He glared angrily at her and Hay Lin couldn't detect a glimmer of mind control. Was he doing this on his own free will?

She walked to him, not wanting to attack him and he readied his sword. Would he attack her?

"Er-Eric?" She said softly.

"Hey you." Eric replied, his voice dark.

Hay Lin had to suppress the tears and the urge to hug him as she went over his body once again. He was wearing an armour similar to Caleb's, which meant that magic wouldn't that effective on him. He looked also a lot buffer than before.

"Why?" She whispered. "Why are you helping her?"

"Because she helped me." He said darkly. "She showed me what kind of monster you truly are."

"M-Monster?" Hay Lin repeated, her heart thumping in pain.

"You abandoned me, Hay Lin." Eric said coldly. "You probably hoped Will would kill me first so that you would have enough time to escape. You lied to me and seduced me."

"I...I..." Hay Lin said frightened, not knowing what to say.

"And she spared me." Eric continued. "She returned me to my home and after that she erased my memories of you."

"Why?" Hay Lin asked again, her knees buckling.

"Because they were hurting me." Eric hissed. "And seeing you again makes me feel that again. But not for long."

Eric raised his sword and Hay Lin watched scared, as a doe caught in headlights, how Eric slashed down on her. If it weren't for a force pushing her away, she would have been beheaded. She looked up to see her savoir, but when she looked she saw the tearstained face of Taranee. Hay Lin could see the pain in Taranee's face and she felt her own emotions coming up. She started crying and hugged Taranee closely, who answered the hug.

"Taranee! He...He!" Hay Lin stammered between her sobs.

"I...I know." Taranee said, her voice also heavy with tears. "Nigel was the same."

Hay Lin looked up in shock and she saw how tears fell down Taranee's cheeks as well. This was just too much. First her parents and grandmother died and now she had to fight her boyfriend. She didn't want to fight anymore.

"I'll take Eric, if you take Nigel for me." Taranee whispered.

Hay Lin looked surprised and wanted to shake her head when Taranee spoke again.

"They aren't the ones we loved." She said, her voice filled with pain. "Don't you see? And I know you don't want me to fight him, as much as I don't want you to fight Nigel... But let's promise that we'll knock them out, okay?"

Hay Lin didn't want to obey at first, but when she caught a glance of Eric's angered gaze, she could only nod. She didn't want him to hate her and she didn't want to suffer like this. She felt how Taranee hugged her once again before the two of them separated.

Hay Lin flew up into the air, neatly dodging Eric and flying straight at Nigel, who wasn't too happy with seeing her.

"Move Hay Lin." He said. "You are not my target."

Hay Lin assumed a fighting pose.

"I'm sorry Nige, but you are not getting near Taranee." She said seriously while trying to ban out Eric's voice as he threatened Taranee.

"Then I'll go through you!" Nigel bellowed as he readied his broadsword.

**...**

"How nice to see you again, Cornelia."

Cornelia scoffed as she dodged a magic bolt, thrown by Elyon. She knew sarcasm when she heard it, but she didn't care. She'd rather fight Elyon and kick her ass than to fight Will again.

"I wish I could say the same, Elyon." Cornelia sneered before blasting her with a telekinetic blast.

Elyon quickly recovered and fired an array of small light missiles at Cornelia. Cornelia made plants grow from the steps of the fortress to block them, but few of them managed to get through and hit her right in the chest. She heard Elyon chuckle while she fell down. Cornelia quickly managed to stabilize herself and healed the wounds on her chest while throwing bricks of the fortress at Elyon, who blocked them with a shield.

"Say Elyon. How did you get Drake and Aldarn to follow you? I though those two had more backbone!" Cornelia taunted after she had seen a glimpse of them.

Elyon smirked at Cornelia and blasted a light bomb at her. Cornelia managed to dodge and her eyes followed the bomb. When it landed on the steps, Cornelia could feel the power of the bomb and was silently glad she dodged it. When she turned around she saw Elyon flying right next to her.

"You'll find that I can be very..._persuasive_." She said teasingly before blasting Cornelia back.

Cornelia barely managed to create a telekinetic shield and block the attack, though it barely stopped the attack.

"Did you blackmail them?" Cornelia asked surprised, not really believing that Elyon could actually blackmail or that both Aldarn and Drake fell for blackmail.

She managed to grab Elyon with her telekinesis and threw her towards the steps, though Elyon managed to pull up in time.

"I'm capable of more than just blackmail." Elyon grinned and blasted at Cornelia.

Yet instead of the attack coursing right at her, it stopped mid-air and Cornelia could see both Drake and Aldarn on their knees in a cell. Elyon was standing before them with her arms crossed.

"Traitor!" Drake yelled.

Elyon ignored him but then turned around. The door opened and Cornelia saw how Will entered. Both rebels trembled, though they seemed to try and stop themselves from doing so. They glared at Will, who only smiled in return.

"Hey boys." She said.

Both Aldarn and Drake started to throw several insults, while Will turned to Elyon. Because of the insults Cornelia could not hear what Will was saying to Elyon. It seemed as if Will was taunting Elyon, by the look of anger on Elyon's face. She turned to the rebels.

"Silence!" She demanded. "You two are calling us traitors, while you've been working with the Guardians all along."

Drake and Aldarn fell silent, but Elyon pressed on.

"Don't you see? Kandrakar sent those Guardians. They tried to kill Will and take over Metamoor! And you followed them blindly."

Cornelia could see how the eyes of the two rebels glazed over and she realized that Elyon had brainwashed the two.

"But you can repent for your sins." Elyon said and stretched her hand. "Join me and repent."

The light ball flickered out and Cornelia looked flabbergasted at Elyon, who looked rather smug.

"Easy, is it not? Getting people to listen at you?" She taunted.

Cornelia felt the jest and angrily threw several bricks of the fortress at Elyon. To her delight they all hit their target and Elyon fell to the ground. Cornelia flew above her and watched how Elyon glowed lightly and healed herself. She then looked rather cross at Cornelia before flying up again.

"How did you get your powers anyway?" Elyon sneered as she threw another attack. "I thought Will had taken your powers."

Cornelia smirked while dodging the attack.

"I'm sorry, your Majesty, for not informing you of a back-up plan." She bluffed. "And soon you guys will fall before Kandrakar!"

She saw Elyon's eyes widen in shock and Cornelia merely taunted a bit. Elyon rushed at Cornelia, while shooting a big array of attacks. Cornelia tried her hardest to avoid the attacks, but several managed to hit her. She fell down once again and lay on the stairs of the fortress. Elyon landed in front of her, her eyes squinted and one of her hands glowing with magic.

"What do you mean?" Elyon hissed while raising her hand.

Cornelia smirked and placed both hands on the ground. Within no time giant plants were growing between her hands and grabbed Elyon tightly. As she healed herself again she flew up to Elyon, smirking while playing with a couple of bangs of hair which hang beside Elyon's face.

"The Oracle has been planning to stop her ever since the beginning." She smirked. "I'm just here to see the fireworks."

Elyon smirked at her in return, while writhing against the strong vines.

"Don't bother. You can't break out that easily and the plants cancel your magic." Cornelia said haughty.

"You really think this will end so easily? Will will break through and kill the Oracle before he finishes his spell." Elyon sneered. "Mark my words blondie. Traitors like you are born to fall."

Cornelia snarled at Elyon and was planning to hit her right in the face when a telepathic call stopped her.

'_Guys, I think we are needed!'_ Halinor said, almost sounding desperate.

Cornelia looked around and saw Will pinning Luba to the ground. For a second she wondered why Will hadn't killed Luba already when she realized. Luba knew the spell! They had to stop Will from finding out before it was too late!

**...**

A feeling of danger crept over her skin. Will couldn't shake it off. Whatever the Oracle was preparing, it was powerful enough to stop her. And it had to be foolproof, or else Luba wouldn't be chanting: 'Have to keep her busy until the Oracle is ready'.

"You are not weak, Luba." Will commented, trying to find an opening in Luba's defence.

"You have much to learn, child." Luba merely replied before slashing her sword at Will.

The sword managed to slightly cut Will's cheek, only increasing Will's anger. Will stepped back and glowered at Luba.

"Then tell me, what kind of spell is the Oracle preparing?" Will asked slyly, making Luba gasp in shock.

"How...?" She asked, but as she was surprised, she was fully open for an attack.

Will took her chance and used all her strength to not only disarm Luba, but also tackle her to the ground. Luba writhed under Will's grasp, but Will kept a tight grasp.

"You'll learn nothing from me, you foul creature." Luba hissed.

Will managed to catch Luba's eyes and Luba stopped her writhing. Her eyes went a bit dull while Will smirked.

"I thought I had much to learn?" She questioned with a grin. "Then why don't you teach me?"

Luba was fighting admirably against her mind control, but she would fall in the end.

"Th..The Oracle... The spell he...Wants to use...Is..." Luba slowly stammered while writhing against Will's grip.

A smile formed on her lips. Just a little more and she would know what the spell was and how she could counter it.

"The spell...Is..." Luba stuttered, but she didn't go any further because Will felt a force pushing her off Luba.

Furious she looked at the culprits. While Tibor and Alfor, who had been fighting against Cedric as well, took Luba away, the main culprits flew in front of her. Will spread her wings and flew up, glaring at the nine of them.

"That was not very nice." She commented while still batting off some water from her clothes.

Both Irma and Cassidy shrugged.

"You haven't been very nice yourself." Cassidy replied.

Will smirked at them before shrugging.

"And I've tried so hard." She mocked. "Now if you would move. I believe the Oracle is waiting for me."

The Guardians went to stand in a fighting pose, all prepared to try and take her on.

"Sorry Will, but you are not going to get past us." Halinor said.

Will grinned, knowing that she had to wrestle through some pesky flies before reaching the jackpot.

"So you're not CHYKN'ing out on me?" Will taunted with a grin.

"Very funny." Nerissa commented dully. "Let's see if you're not going to run with your tail between your legs."

Will merely ignored her predecessor and turned to her former friends.

"I bet you guys are ITCH'ing to get some payback, aren't you?" She taunted, actually grinning at the puns.

She saw both Irma and Cornelia grimacing while Hay Lin had to contain her groans.

"I'm itching to kick that smirk from your face!" Irma yelled annoyed.

She started with throwing ice picks at Will. Will quickly dodged and noticed to her annoyance that the girls had gotten stronger. With her diminishment in power, this could actually end up to be quite challenging.

Will quickly countered with the exact same attack, only for Halinor and Taranee to melt them away before they could reach their target. Will growled before sending bolts of lightning at them. Though Nerissa managed to absorb one, which seemed to hurt her as well, the other managed to hit Taranee. Taranee shrieked in pain and dropped to the ground, making Will believe she would be out of the battle, when another power took a hold of her. She looked around to see that Kadma, Cornelia, Hay Lin and Yan Lin were holding her in place. At first she didn't realize why and tried to escape when suddenly the full power of two fire blasts and one lightning bolt caught her in the back by surprise. Due to the surprise she had no time to absorb it and received the full hit. The Air and Earth Guardians let go of her and Will fell weakly to the ground. She gritted her teeth and healed herself before glaring at the nine Guardians.

"You've been an ITCH on my back for far too long!" She bellowed as she made lightning crackle around her. "And I'm going to enjoy killing all of you."

**...**

Angelo was actually grinning. He knew he shouldn't, but how could he not? Caleb had gone wild and was slashing like a retard while tiring himself. Angelo only had to dodge at the right moments and Caleb would slash into the air. He just wished his counter attacks were more useful than denting the armour.

"Give up Caleb." Angelo said, trying to taunt Caleb even more. "You were never meant to help Will."

To Angelo's surprise, Caleb stopped his attacks. He was huffing yet he had a sinister smirk on his face. Angelo didn't let that scare him and readied himself, in case of a new torrent of attacks.

"I see." Caleb huffed.

Angelo raised an eyebrow.

"What?" He asked.

Caleb laughed fruitlessly, making Angelo grow annoyed and impatient.

"What?" He demanded again.

"I know." Caleb said in a teasing tone. "I know why you wanted to fight me so badly."

Angelo gritted his teeth and tightened the grip on his sword. If the guy would make one wrong move, he would try and cut his head.

"You think I gave you an unfair chance, don't you?" Caleb continued.

"Of course." Angelo growled. "You stabbed me without a warning."

"Not that, boy." Caleb said as he waved it away. "I meant something more important."

Caleb looked aside and Angelo briefly let his eyes wander to where Caleb was looking at. He could see Will fighting all nine the Guardians and keeping her ground. He could see how she jumped from Nerissa and flew right into the mist their attacks must have caused.

"What do you mean?" He growled, though his heart was beating loudly.

"You wanted a chance with her, didn't you?" Caleb grinned. "You wanted to be by her side, is it not?"

Angelo gritted his teeth and moved at Caleb, slashing his sword at him. Caleb blocked at Angelo looked fiercely into Caleb's eyes.

"That's none of your concerns." He growled, making Caleb breath a laugh.

Caleb pushed back and the two ended again in a deadlock.

"I think so." Caleb whispered devilishly. "I think you hate me because I took your chance away to help Will."

Angelo was enraged and slashed furiously at Caleb, who grinned in the process. He was right. It was all Caleb's fault Will went the wrong way. That she killed so many people for her revenge. It was Caleb's fault he'd died and wasn't capable of helping Will. Of stopping her.

His mind went blank as he slashed at Caleb. He only wanted to hurt him. To kill him.

A maniacal grin appeared on his lips as he continued slashing. Caleb started to have difficulty with blocking his attacks and made attempts to dodge, but he was less skilful than Angelo when it came to dodging. Angelo kept grinning maniacally until he saw his own reflection in the golden sign on Caleb's breast plate. That look...It was the same as Will wore now as she fought the Guardians.

Angelo realized what he'd been doing and looked shocked at his sword. The grin was still on his face and he quickly stopped the attacks on Caleb. He...He was falling into darkness if he didn't stop himself now. Just like Hay Lin said.

"Weakling."

Angelo looked to see Caleb thrust his sword full into his armour. Angelo screamed loudly, more from shock than from pain, and fell to the ground. His armour crumbled into pieces and Angelo looked terrified at Caleb, who was smirking at him.

"You actually had a fair chance of beating me." Caleb said with a foul grin. "But you stopped your darkness. You failed yourself and now you will fall once more."

Angelo narrowed his eyes and glared at Caleb.

"I'd rather die again than fall into the darkness to win." He spat. "And I will not die because of a guy who blindly follows the darkness."

Caleb growled and raised his sword. Angelo saw it lunge down and he closed his eyes as he got up, thrusting his sword blindly at Caleb. Angelo felt how iron gently cut his skin on his arm, when he felt how Caleb's power disappeared. Angelo opened his eyes and saw Caleb looking surprised at him, while Angelo's sword was penetrating his throat. Angelo quickly rolled aside and Caleb fell to the ground, death.

Angelo got up and looked sadly at Caleb while taking his own sword back.

"I... I'm sorry, Caleb." He finally said. "I never wanted you death...Just hurt and captured."

He bent forwards and closed Caleb's eyes. That was the least he owed him.

"Lord, forgive him for his sins. He was blinded." Angelo prayed. "And forgive me for taking his life. I never planned to."

With that Angelo turned his back on Caleb and looked over the battlefield. He could see that both Nigel and Eric were knock out, while Elyon seemed to be wrestling against some vines. Alfor lay somewhere on the ground, knocked out as well, while Tibor had grown a couple of feet and was still fighting Cedric, who also looked battered. Miranda was locked in ice while Drake was fighting against some vines. Aldarn was trying to free Miranda from the ice as well as cutting the vines around Drake.

He then looked at the Guardians and watched a peculiar scene. While Nerissa and Cornelia lay knock out, or even dead Angelo was not certain at this point, on the ground, the others were flying and attacking Will. Angelo saw how Will casted Halinor aside and a great smoke explosion appeared. Angelo could see fire flash inside the smoke and winds trying to blow it away, but the smoke remained in its place. But what worried Angelo was the fact that Will flew out of it and headed straight for the fortress. Had she figured out what the spell was? He had to go stop her, no matter what.

**...**

_A little earlier_

Will grinned. She had managed to kill Cornelia again (which gave her great pleasure, mind you) and Nerissa. The death of her predecessor made her feel even better. She had finally proved that she was better than Nerissa and seeing that Nerissa was the only one who could weaken her attacks by extracting energy made it only better. Now Will could fight with full power against the remaining Guardians and her prime target was Halinor.

Not because she had a particular hatred against Halinor, because if she would pick the people she hated, Irma would have been next. But it was something that she'd been picking up during the battle that worried her.

Due to her being the Heart of Kandrakar, Will was still capable of entering the telepathic link of the Guardians. Which led to her finding out that only the Kandrakarian Council knew about the spell. Also the fact that the Guardians had been smirking when she exclaimed that she would kill them all worried her. Since when were people happy with the prospect that they would die?

Will quickly found Halinor flying around and she shot at her. She couldn't stop herself when Halinor screamed in surprise and yelled at her.

"This CHYK is about to get HIT!" She yelled before firing a big fire ball at Halinor.

Halinor tried to stop the fireball, but it was just a little too much for her to handle. She was hit and fell to the ground, but Irma and Taranee were quick to stop Will's pursuit.

"Sorry Will, but you just roasted that chick." Irma growled while firing multiple ice picks.

"And your puns are terrible." Taranee added while firing as many fireballs as she could.

Will stopped the fireballs with the ice picks Irma was throwing, making those dissolve to water. She had to get to Halinor and find out about the spell, but it became increasingly difficult with all the other Guardians stopping her. She growled and sent lightning at Irma and Taranee, who created a shield in an attempt to block it. To Will's delight, Kadma and Cassidy came to their help. Will sent a gust of wind at them, knocking them away for a brief moment.

She then dove for Halinor, who was shaking the wooziness away with the help of Hay Lin and Yan Lin. She was quick to electrocute both the Air Guardians, who seemingly lost consciousness. Will knew it would be temporary and she was sure she wouldn't get a lot of time, but it had to suffice.

She lunged at Halinor's throat, getting a firm grip on it. Halinor tried hopelessly to free herself, by holding Will's arm and heating her hands. Thought Will absorbed part of the energy, it was still stinging and annoying. Will glared at Halinor and managed to make eye contact with her. Now it would be a mind game and she wasn't planning on going gentle and teasing like she did with Luba.

"Tell me, what is the spell the Oracle prepares?" Will growled, but Halinor managed to keep her mouth shut.

Will growled at the stubbornness of Halinor and decided to take matters in her own hands. Instead of asking, she would find the answer herself.

The search felt long and arduous, but that was because of all the mental barriers Halinor had put up. Will felt how her time was ending as she pushed through the last mental barrier where she finally found her answer. Once she knew it she gasped loudly and let go of Halinor, who was now coughing and gasping for breath. Will's eyes narrowed and she held her hand in front of Halinor's face.

"You'll pay for making me waste my time." She growled before unleashing one of her most powerful attacks of Quintessence.

Halinor shrieked in pain, though it was only short lived. Will watched how her corpse fell to the ground when several shrieks came from different places. She turned to see the remaining Guardians lunging at her, all preparing attacks., Cassidy, Kadma and Yan Lin seemed to be angered while the remaining Guardians had their usual angered look on their face. Though she would have loved to kill them now, more pressing were at hand. If the Oracle managed to end that spell...All would end for her.

She made her hands smoke and used the powers of Air to create a gigantic smoke veil. While the confusion was still there, Will created an Astral Drop with some of her memories. That way it would keep the illusion that she was still there and then the pesky Guardians wouldn't stop her. She sent it through the cloud, towards the Guardians while Will shot the other way. She briefly thought she hit someone, but she wasn't concerned. The person wouldn't have seen her anyway.

Will landed calmly on the top of the stairs and she briefly glanced over her shoulder. She could hear the sounds of attacks flying and she grinned. They were easily fooled.

She ran into the fortress, faintly remembering where the chambers of the Oracle were and hurried towards them. But when she entered the hallway leading to the room she found herself blocked by yet another person. The first one to greet her in fact.

"Angelo." She said with a cold voice.

Angelo grinned sadly at her.

"Hey Will."

_**[A/N] O...M...G... So many deaths! And did Angelo just kill Caleb? What the hell is going on here? And why is Will so afraid of that spell? **__**What**__** is that spell? I promise that that will be revealed in the next chapter. I swear! And it will start with a nice part which Lexvan sent to me. So thanks Lexvan!**_

_**And yeah. I had to make those puns. You have no idea how long I've been waiting to use those. xD**_

_**Now good night to you all and don't forget the reviews!**_

_**Love ya, bye!**_


	19. Chapter 18 Time is running out

**Chapter 18 Time is running out.**

Will sneered at the boy in front of her. She had been keeping an eye on the battle between Angelo and Caleb and seeing that Angelo was still alive, meant that Caleb had either died or been knocked-out. But Will could no longer feel Caleb's presence, which meant that Angelo had actually killed Caleb.

She looked unbelievingly at Angelo, who sheathed his sword.

"You killed Caleb." She said, her voice stating her surprise.

Angelo sighed sadly and nodded.

"I never meant to." He said sadly. "It just...Happened."

Will scoffed and unsheathed her sword. Now was not the time to be surprised or hurt by Angelo. She wasn't hurt that he had actually killed a guy. No, she wasn't. She was just impressed he had that in him.

"Unsheathe your sword." She commanded with an ice cold voice. "Unless you want to die like a pig."

Angelo shook his head and took of his sheathed sword. He threw it at the ground and looked determined at Will.

"No. I will not fight my best friend." He stated bravely.

Will sneered darkly and growled.

"That one belongs to the past. She died on the day her friends betrayed her." She snarled.

Angelo shook his head and actually took a step forward.

"I won't believe it." He said resolute. "The Will I know is still there. I know it."

He took one more step and Will raised her sword.

"One more step and your head will be rolling. That's something you will believe." She growled at him.

Angelo's breathing became slow and Will could see his chest rise and fall. She studied his face but she could only find hope and love. There was no fear, no anger. He just wanted to be with her.

"Move Angelo and let me through." Will growled, trying to keep her mind on track.

Angelo shook stubbornly his head.

"No." He said. "I'm sorry, but you're not getting to the Oracle."

Will sighed inwardly. She really didn't want to do it, but if he remained this hard-headed, she had no choice.

"Then I'll go through you!" She growled and lunged forward.

Yet before she could strike she could visualize the body of Angelo and how it had hurt her to see it. How glad she was she hadn't killed him. And how sad she was for seeing him like that. Her sword stopped inches from his chest and Will sparked out of frustration. Her sword was trembling and her voice was shaking.

"Why?" She said as she lowered her sword. "I control two Hearts and a world, yet I can't strike you down. Why are you such a nuisance?"

For the first time since the betrayal, Will felt tears welling up. She pushed them down with all her might and didn't look at Angelo. She heard how he stepped forward.

"Will?" He asked, his voice filled with concern and hesitation.

Will grinned in herself. Angelo was still concerned about her. After all she'd done. After all the lives she had destroyed with her own hands, he still cared for her. He was so unlike Caleb, who followed her like a lapdog. Angelo had his own mind, his own ideas and he would at least argue with her to show he was right instead of nodding like a sheep.

"I hate it that you're so nice to me after all I've done." She said as she looked at him with a grin. A genuine grin.

Angelo smiled in return and actually dared to place his hand against her cheek. She laid her head in his hand while he grinned in return.

"You're my best friend." He said with smile. "How can I hate yo- LOOK OUT!"

Will was surprised when Angelo wrapped his arms around her and spun around. She heard how he cried in pain and felt how the sudden weight of Angelo's body pressed against her. As if in slow motion, Will watched how Angelo fell into her arms. Her eyes went to his chest, where an ice pick was sticking out. A gasp caught her attention and her eyes went to Irma, who was standing a couple of feet away behind a pillar.

"Why...Why would he... Why did he take the blow for her?" Irma questioned surprised and shocked. "I could have ended it... The fool!"

Will felt her anger rise, even more then when she was betrayed in the first place. Irma had just tried to cowardly attack her in the back and Angelo stopped it. He saved her.

For a moment her mind went completely blank and her eyes were focused on Irma. Irma quickly raised an ice shield, but it was futile. Will screamed in rage which was followed by an energy beam powerful enough to break through Irma's shield as if it was nothing and crush Irma into the wall behind her, leaving a hole in her chest.

Heavy breaths followed when Angelo's dying cough caught her attention. Suddenly all her hatred and anger disappeared and Will looked with true concern at Angelo.

"Don't die." She whispered furiously as she started to melt the ice pick. "I was a fool last time for letting you die. Don't do it again."

The ice pick quickly melted at her touch and she placed her hands on the wound. She could still heal it. She could still save him.

Angelo coughed some blood and Will looked worried at him. He grinned at her and took her hands, preventing her from healing him.

"Don't." He muttered. "It's too late for that."

Real tears started to flow from her eyes. Instead of being surprised, Will only became angrier. He was underestimating her.

"Why?" She asked gruffly. "Why did you stop that attack?"

Angelo grinned at her before coughing loudly. Will took a better hold of him and he gently moved upward. Will tried to push him back. She didn't want him to strain himself, yet Angelo pushed on. To Will's surprise, Angelo's and her lips met and Angelo kissed her softly.

"I've been wanting to do that for a long time now." He said softly.

Will felt how even more tears were rolling down. She couldn't believe it. Angelo had really loved her, after all she'd done.

Her heart was thumping even more as she felt how Angelo's life force was disappearing. Her hands glowed again and she placed them on his chest, ignoring his weak mutterings. Slowly she saw how the hole started to heal, but that didn't stop Angelo from dying. She could still feel that his life force was diminishing and she slowly laid him on the floor. They both looked in each other's eyes and Angelo managed to place his hand on Will's cheek once more. She slowly placed her lips on Angelo's and kissed him.

"Don't go." She whispered.

Angelo grinned at her and Will could see how his spirit left his body. More tears fell down her face. It had been her fault. The ice pick was meant for her. If she'd been hit, she would have survived. But Angelo... He was never supposed to be in this war. He was supposed to stay far out of it. As far away as possible.

Footsteps echoed through the hallway and Will could feel how the remaining Guardians came closer. She heard several gasps and felt how the ground beneath her started to tremble.

"You...You killed him!" She heard Kadma scream in fury.

Will did not stop the attack and let it fully hit her. The ground ripped open and a stone slap lunged her at the wall. It wasn't very effective, but Kadma wasn't finished. More debris flew her way, yet Will did not block or dodge. Perhaps it was better if the Oracle ended the spell.

But as that thought passed her mind, Will only became darker. If he finished that spell, it would only mean that she would have to go through all this again. Again feeling so much agony of betrayal and the loss of a loved one. She had to feel the treachery of Cornelia and the others once more.

"You killed Irma again!" Hay Lin exclaimed and Will felt how air attacks were added to the earth attacks of Kadma.

Yes, she had killed Irma again, but with good reason. Because Irma had killed Angelo. Because Irma had been so cowardly to attack from behind. And while Angelo was actually succeeding in keeping her away.

It became rather clear to Will. Everyone who had tried to stop her from getting to the Oracle had died. That could only mean one thing. She was meant to stop him. She would take his place and show every single being how it felt to fall into darkness. The loneliness, the agony and the fear. They would all feel her wrath, because humanity was weak. You could not trust them at all.

"How could you kill him?" Kadma yelled furiously.

She had enough of it. Enough of the stupid accusations. She would end it all.

**...**

Taranee was surprised when the smokescreen had appeared. She didn't know Will was capable of it and it had been extremely difficult to make it disperse. But once it was gone, she could see Will flying in the middle of the group, though she seemed to be looking a bit dazed. Had someone managed to hit her during the commotion?

Or that was what she thought until Irma send out a telepathic call, telling her that Will had gone into the fortress and was now facing off with Angelo. It didn't take long for Taranee to realize that the Will in front of them was a mere illusion or perhaps an Astral Drop. While Yan Lin and Hay Lin played as decoy for the fake Will, Taranee went into the fortress, followed by both Kadma and Cassidy. They had to stop Will.

Taranee had thought she would see either Will and Angelo in a dead-lock or Will standing over Angelo with a maniacal smile on her face while Angelo lay on the ground, dead. She had not expected to see Will bend over Angelo while trying to heal him. Taranee even saw Will crying. What had happened here? Will's evil aura was completely gone and Taranee could actually see the old Will again. The one who'd been her best friend.

She gasped when she saw how Will kissed Angelo and while Angelo's hand fell down her face. Taranee knew he'd died but had Will really killed him?

"You...You killed him!" She heard Kadma scream in fury.

Taranee looked aside and saw how Kadma started to use her magic to blow Will against a wall. As Kadma started to throw debris at Will, while the latter did not even lift a finger, Taranee and Cassidy tried to calm Kadma down.

"Kaddie. I don't think she killed him." Cassidy said unsure. "I mean, look at her! She clearly cried! Would a murderer cry?"

"Kadma, I understand that you're angry, but look at Will. Her evil aura has vanished." Taranee tried to reason, but Kadma was too furious to listen.

A new gasp caught Taranee's attention and she looked aside to see Hay Lin look shocked at what seemed to be Irma. Taranee was surprised that she hadn't noticed it before and shocked to see a hole in Irma's chest. Had Will done something to Irma or tried to and had Angelo tried to protect Irma?

"You killed Irma again!" Hay Lin exclaimed as she started to attack Will furiously.

For some reason, Taranee started to feel very uncomfortable. Both Kadma and Hay Lin were now attacking Will, while Yan Lin and Cassidy were trying to calm them down, yet Will had not reacted. Not reacted to a single thing.

That feeling only started to increase after Kadma accused Will again of killing Angelo. She knew that they'd chosen the wrong course of action the moment Will looked up.

It was as if a bomb exploded and Taranee felt as if she was being smothered by magical and dark pressure. The dark flame Will had before the scene with Angelo returned fully and even increased in size. It was now melting the wall near Will and dark wisps of magic flew through the air. Taranee even thought she heard agonizing screams in the distance.

"SHUT UP!" Will exclaimed, her echo making Taranee's hair move. "I SHALL END THIS!"

"Well...That escalated quickly." Cassidy remarked dryly as Will blocked the attacks of Kadma and Hay Lin.

Taranee hadn't enough time to see exactly what was happening. One second, Will was still blocking the attacks of Kadma and Hay Lin, the other moment Will was holding both Hay Lin and Kadma by their throats and the dark flame was burning them. Taranee had to look away while their agonizing screams filled the hallway.

When the screams had stopped, Taranee dared to look again. Hay Lin and Kadma lay dead on the ground while Will was busy opening the door to the Oracle. She, Cassidy and Yan Lin combined attacks to blast Will away, but the attacks were redirected with ease. The last Taranee saw of Will was her angered, tear-streaked face. Then the doors closed and Will had disappeared into the Oracle's chambers.

Taranee saw how Cassidy and Yan Lin cried for Hay Lin and Kadma, yet Taranee couldn't understand what was happening.

"What...Just happened?" She asked aloud.

**...**

Himerish watched as the child, which had been forsaken by destiny, entered his chambers. Her dark aura tried to fill the chamber, but his own light aura was keeping it at bay. Her blood red hair hang before her eyes and as she took a step forward, Himerish stood up.

He had been speaking the words of the ancient spell for two days now, after searching for it in the deepest parts of Kandrakar for half a year and going through several rituals to open the remaining seals on the spell for the other half. Though he had wished that Will would have postponed the attack for yet another day, he knew she wouldn't. She could feel the magic power of the spell and that had worried her.

'Will.' He spoke telepathically.

If Himerish stopped his incantation, he would have to start all over again. But with the amount of magical power he'd used to get through the rituals and the spell itself, he knew he wouldn't have the strength. Especially not if he and Will were to fight, because now Will would actually be a threat to him.

Will did not reply to his greeting. She was just standing there, with her back against the door. Himerish could hear how the remaining Guardians tried to get in as well, but with the current pressure in the room, it would be impossible for them to open the door.

The sound of a sob made Himerish look at Will, while still muttering the incantation. Had he just... Had he just hear her sob?

To his surprise, Will sat on the ground, with her knees against her chest, something she used to do before the betrayal. Whenever she was extremely sad.

More sobs filled the room and Himerish felt concern and guilt in his own heart. He could have stopped this all and spared the girl a lot of pain, but destiny wanted to test the girls. But the test was too difficult for them to pass at this moment. Perhaps if they'd been older or under other circumstances.

Himerish could see how tears fell on the ground and he felt how the aura around the girl was loaded with great grief and sadness. Had her last encounter with Angelo meant that much? No, he could feel the sleeping anger behind the grief. It would be a matter of time before the beast would reawaken. Yet, now Will was open. She could still be saved. If he could simply keep her from interrupting him, everything would be fixed and he would stop the test.

'Will?' He asked again, hoping to get a response from the girl.

As Will kept sobbing, Himerish slowly walked forward. While he kept his incantation up, he tried to look into the girl's mind, but he knew it was too dangerous. He crouched in front of her and placed his hand gently on her shoulder, but that was when she looked up. Her face was red of tears and her eyes were two pools of dark chocolate. He could see that she'd abandoned all hope and happiness. She'd become what she'd wished for and Himerish only felt worse.

"I can't let you finish that spell." She said, her voice holding an eerie echo.

She pushed his hand away and got up, her wings spread and Himerish felt a slight increase of power in the dark aura.

"Everything... It will all happen again." She muttered, her voice getting darker and darker. "I can't bear to go through that again."

Himerish did a step back as Will did a step forward. He shook his head sadly.

'You don't understand Will.' He replied telepathically. 'I will not let this happen again. I will personally intervene and spare you from this agony.'

A hollow laugh escaped Will's lips and she looked darkly at Himerish.

"Nice words." She said as lightning sparked around her. "But do you really think I'm still the same gullible idiot from five years ago? I've trusted so many people and in the end, they all turned out to be a disappointment. They all betrayed me. It makes you wonder if trust is only a nice word made for fairy tales."

'Will, I can help you. Just let me finish the time spell and...' Himerish tried, but he knew it to be fatal.

Lightning sparked violently around Will and it blasted him away.

"No." Will said maliciously. "Your time is over. I will take matters in my own hands. As the new Oracle."

Himerish looked shocked at Will and nearly missed a part of the incantation. Will shot at him, her wings completely spread and in her hands her sword. Himerish thanked God for being a warrior himself and easily dodged the sword, yet he didn't expect that Will would create another blade out of air and make it slash right after the sword. The air blade slashed him in his arm, yet Himerish didn't yell out in pain. He could hide it and he would not let the incantation be interrupted.

He created a sword out of the purple magic of Kandrakar and was quick to block Will's new assault. Himerish felt how the sadness and the grief disappeared from the aura and how the hatred and anger filled that place. The aura became only stronger and Himerish had to fully release his aura to not be pushed back by the force of darkness.

Will's eyes sparked insanely and her twisted smirk was once again on her face. Her attacks were powerful but very sloppy. It was as if she was to do more damage than to kill him. Himerish defended against the powerful sword attacks, but the assault of the elements which followed several attacks were almost impossible to foresee or stop. He could only dodge and grit his teeth while speeding up the incantation.

But as he started to speed up the incantation, Will's assault became more precise. Himerish was still capable of blocking the attacks and he managed to lunge at her as well, hoping that his attacks would keep her off bay.

Their swords clashed multiple times, but Himerish had to push himself away every time that happened, because Will started to spark with black lightning and he himself wasn't sure if could handle such a strong Quintessential attack at short range.

Finally Himerish managed to hit Will in her leg. Will growled in pain and followed with a blast of fire. Himerish rolled out of the way of the angry fire but found his path blocked by a blast of lightning. He quickly formed a shield as the fire washed over him. Through the flames he could see Will lunging at him. He quickly dispatched the shield and caught Will in the middle of her lunge. This made her stagger for a moment and it was long enough for Himerish to cut her thumb.

Will screamed in pain and Himerish turned his head. He'd never wanted to go this extreme, but Will was becoming more and more dangerous. The spell was nearing its end, but Will was becoming more and more determined to kill him.

"You... You cut off my thumb." Will said dumbstruck.

Himerish had been hoping that Will would heal her leg and hand, because that would take time and it would only increase his chances of finishing the spell. But she simply switched hands with her sword and glared darkly at him.

"Nice try, but I won't waste _time_ on healing. I will do that after I kill you." She said darkly.

With this she made a sudden slash and unhanded Himerish. Himerish was surprised that a rookie could have unhanded him like that, but he had no time to actually stay surprised. Will's sword touched his throat and with every word Himerish uttered, he could feel it gently sting his skin.

"Time to stop." Will said with a grin.

Himerish acted quickly by creating a wave of purple magic to push Will away. If he'd been a second later, Will would have pierced his throat.

He got up and prepared yet another barrier when Will let out a scream off frustration. He saw how multiple rocks were flying his way, all sparking with electricity. His barrier luckily blocked them but what happened after that was unexpected. The rocks banded together and created small golems. The golems started to smash the barrier and Himerish made his barrier explode. The golems were blown to pieces but Himerish was not quick enough to block the second attack from Will.

A large blast of water, accompanied with more air slashes blasted at him. He still managed to dodge several air slashes, while not crying in pain when one hit. The water blast hit him in the head, which also immediately froze. Himerish attempted to melt the ice before the spell was completely interrupted, but Will blasted him with a big enough fire blast to melt the ice.

Himerish skidded over the floor and groaned in his mind. He was nearly there. The last words were nearly spoken. He could not fail now.

Will walked towards him, her hands crackling menacingly with Quintessence. Himerish crawled a bit backwards while muttering the last verse of the spell.

Will stood before him and grabbed him by his collar. He looked into her dark eyes and saw that her soul was lost.

"Any last words?" She threatened, her echo lingering in his head.

Himerish grinned as he nodded.

"Tempus. Retro. Vertro."

His words had an immediate effect and as his mind went blank, he could hear the whispers of the past.

"_Don't go." She whispered._

"_Because they were hurting me." Eric hissed. "And seeing you again makes me feel that again. But not for long."_

"_So you finally came here?" Angelo asked calmly._

"_I… I…" Eric stammered, finding himself at a loss of words. "I want to join you."_

"_I…I am sorry." Taranee said. "I'm sorry Angelo."_

"_Do your best Guardians, because I don't think you will enjoy dying twice." He said gravely._

"_I… I want to ask you… If you would want to… Could you please let this boy Eric alive?"_

"_How many guards do you think he has out there? 5000? Maybe more? We have to attack the castle!"_

"_Pity. You would have grown up to be quite the handsome guy."_

"_Next time when you decide to go out, make sure one of us accompanies you." He said, his voice heavy with anger for her stupidity._

"_Why hello purretty lady." He said seductively, his tail swishing behind him._

"_You think you're funny?" Aldarn whispered harshly at him, tears forming in his angered eyes. "You've got some nerve, showing up and renouncing like that."_

"_Treasures! Treasures for trade!"_

"_Don't bow for me like that Lisa. We are of the same age nonetheless. You have the right to look at me straight when you beg for mercy." She said, her voice filled with laughter._

"_Training dismissed." He said coarsely._

"_I vow on every Heart of every world that I will not betray you unless you betray me." Cedric said, smiling at her._

"_Gaea." He said and he couldn't stop a small smile from gracing his already handsome face. "What brings you here at this time? Surely you should be celebrating your victory over a certain redhead?"_

"_It means that the little Guardian lost her light."_

"_We're friends!" She cried before a flamethrower burnt her wings, making her scream in agony._

…

"WHAAAA!"

Will shot up, sweat pearling down her face. At first she was disorientated, she had no idea where she was. Slowly her surroundings became clearer and she saw that she was looking straight into a very concerned looking Hay Lin. As Will blinked slowly, Hay Lin started to yell.

"Guys! She's up!"

As Will hoisted herself into a sitting position, she found herself surrounded by Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, Hay Lin and Caleb, who all had a worried look on their face.

"Hey sleepy head." Irma said with a grin. "You gave us quite a scare."

Will rubbed her head, but as she raised her arm she felt a pain running over her back. She winced in pain, to which Hay Lin reacted.

"Does it still hurt? Wait, I'll get grandma."

With that Hay Lin stormed away before Will could even ask what had happened.

As if Taranee had sensed the question, she took her hand and looked concerned.

"We went to stop a Lurden attack on a village west of Meridian, remember?" She said calmly. "That village with that nice girl named Lisa?"

The name Lisa rang a bell in Will's head, but she couldn't recall a thing. She shook her head slowly.

"A Lurden hit you in your back with a spear and you fell to the ground. I guess you've got a temporary amnesia." Caleb said relieved.

"Oh…" Was all Will could say.

Cornelia hugged her and Will felt for some reason relieved.

"Never scare us like that, ever again. Understood?" She said as the two separated.

Will nodded and was quickly hugged by the other girls as well. But that was before Yan Lin came in and shooed them away so she could get some rest. As Will turned in the old couch in the basement, she noticed a small mark on her hand. As she looked better at it, she noticed that it was her sign, completely black. She wondered where she'd gotten it and softly touched it. A cold feeling came from it and Will shivered. Perhaps it was better for things to stay in the dark.

…

Himerish sighed relieved as he watched Will fall asleep. Luba, Halinor, Tibor and Alfor were all watching with him and it was Luba who asked the question.

"Oracle, are you sure she will not remember a thing?"

Himerish sighed.  
>"Only we should be the ones to hold the memory of the past year." He replied.<p>

"But the sign on her hand…" Tibor muttered.

Himerish placed his hand on Tibor's shoulder. He could understand the concerns and he himself wasn't sure himself. Therefore he replied the Keeper's last train of thought.

"It is sometimes better for things to stay in the dark."

_**[A/N] The end. Now there will be multiple questions but the main one will probably be: Will will ever remember this? I don't know. But I hoped you people enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. And the best part. I finished it before I go to college! Now I can focus on my other stories, of which a poll is currently online on my page. Vote and be amazed.  
>Review!<strong>_


	20. Addition

**Addition.**

A while ago another writer asked me to write a sequel. I didn't do it, nor do I want to because I'm afraid I would mess it up. So, this author asked me if it was okay for him to write a "What if" sequel in which the Oracle didn't manage to finish the time spell. And I gave the okay. Now 'Fragment of Ring' has posted the story, called: 'Company of Shadowed Light'. It's a crossover between Winx Club and W.I.T.C.H. and, if I may say so, one of the better ones out there. I helped him by test reading and beta-reading the chapters and making sure the characters stayed as in character as possible and I must say, I'm not disappointed with the result.  
>Also, it's M rated, for the same reason that I wasn't sure if this story was T or M.<p>

Therefore, if you liked this story, I recommend you to read "Company of Shadowed Light" by Fragment of Ring.

Thank you for your time and see you either reviewing that story, or in one of mine.

**TTigerz out.**


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